In a speech to university students on Saturday, Ali Eddin Helal, media secretary for the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), said the absence of political pluralism in Egypt opened the door to "fascism and tyranny." He went on to assert that the NDP could not be held responsible for the "feebleness" of Egypt's opposition parties. Helal added that some opposition parties, such as the Wafd Party, suffered from what he called "obsolete discourse." "They still refer to the July Revolution as a coup d'etat," he said. Helal denied that he had called on Mohamed ElBaradei, a potential candidate in next year's presidential election, to join the NDP. "The man made it clear that he has no intention to join any political parties," he said. On demands to amend the constitution to allow citizens to run as independents in presidential races, Helal stressed that all would-be candidates must be members of a political party. "Candidates must have a solid political platform and not just attractive slogans," he said, adding that the amendment of the constitution for a certain person or people would be "farcical." "It's premature, if not insolent, to talk about a presidential candidate, since the position is not yet vacant," Helal said. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
