The secretary-general of the Presidential Election Commission has questioned the wisdom of allowing appeals against its decisions. "Appeals against the commission's decisions could hinder its work," Hamdan Fahmy told Al-Arabiya satellite channel on Saturday. "If one decision is appealed it could cause delays to later decisions," he added. Such appeals could be deemed unconstitutional, Fahmy noted, because the constitution states the commission has full control over the poll. According to Article 7 of the draft election law, the right to file appeals will be confined to "those directly concerned with the election process, especially candidates." Appeals should be filed within two days of the original decision and Supreme Administrative Court will then issue a final verdict within one week. Holding presidential and parliamentary polls simultaneously is permitted by the constitution, Fahmy added. This could be necessary to ensure both elections are held within six months of the constitution's ratification, as required by Article 230. The 2014 constitution was approved by an overwhelming majority on 18 January. The commission will release the election schedule after the election law is issued, Fahmy confirmed. If there is only one candidate, he added, the election will go ahead and the candidate will have to secure more than half the valid votes. When asked whether former presidents Hosni Mubarak and Mohamed Morsi could stand, Fahmy said any eligible citizen on the voters database can be a candidate. The constitution says presidential elections should be take place around 17 April. But Fahmy said this is the date when preparations for the election have to begin – not the voting itself. The Presidential Election Commission is a five-member judicial body tasked with supervising the upcoming presidential polls. Source : Ahram online
