Governor of Beheira General Mohamed Shaarawy this week said he would support President Hosni Mubarak if the latter decided to run for a sixth term as president. He attributed his decision to Mubarak's many achievements at the local level over the last three decades. Shaarawy also told Al-Masry Al-Youm that he would support a presidential bid by Gamal Mubarak, secretary-general of the ruling National Democratic Party's policies committee and son of President Mubarak, if he decided to run in elections slated for next year. The governor denied speculation that a recent visit to Beheira by the younger Mubarak had been related to electoral campaigning or anything pertaining to presidential succession. Shaarawy said the reason for the visit was to follow up on "executive work" within the governorate and to ensure that civil services and infrastructure were being provided to residents. He said the visit had come as a surprise, insisting that no pre-arrangements had been made. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
