Parliamentary sources told reporters Wednesday that Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi will address the country's newly-elected House of Representatives for the first time next week. Al-Sisi is expected to address a wide array of domestic and regional issues, including the current economic situation. Sources told Ahram Online that Al-Sisi's visit is expected to be on Sunday or Monday. Egypt's parliament will hold a plenary session Saturday to discuss a number of controversial issues, including a draft of the House's new by-laws and code of conduct, as well as another resignation request submitted by appointed MP and former high-profile judge Sirri Siam. The parliament building in Downtown Cairo has been under tight security since Tuesday in preparation for Al-Sisi's visit, which will be the first since he took office in June 2014. Parliament's secretary-general Ahmed Saaddin told reporters that the presidential Republican Guard took control of the parliament building to implement final security measures before Al-Sisi's visit. "This is a routine measure and all parliamentary staff on this day will be on duty," said Saaddin. Saaddin also added that a number of foreign guests, primarily ambassadors of foreign countries and speakers of a number of Arab parliaments, would also be invited to attend the speech. He said that Prime Minister Sherif Ismail and 34 other cabinet ministers, the grand sheikh of Al-Azhar, and the pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church would also attend. Egypt's new parliament is composed of 596 MPs, an unprecedented figure in Egypt's 150-year-old parliamentary history. "This big number, in addition to more than 100 guests, will push the number attending the speech to more than 700," said Saaddin. The last time an Egyptian president visited parliament was in December 2010 when ousted president Hosni Mubarak addressed a newly-elected People's Assembly which was voted in a process marred by widespread rigging fraud by the then-ruling party, the NDP. In this speech, Mubarak ridiculed some political figures who decided to form a parallel parliament in protest against rigging practices, saying, "Let them have fun." The assembly, which was dominated by Mubarak's now defunct ruling National Democratic Party (NDP), was dissolved two months later, after Mubarak was deposed from office in February 2011. According to Article 150 of the 2014 Constitution, the president of the republic may, if he chooses, delivers a public speech before parliament after its inaugural session. After El-Sisi's speech and after parliament's new by-laws are endorsed and its new committees are formed, the government of Prime Minister Sherif Ismail will be required to deliver its policy statement before the House. According to Article 146, the government's policy statement must gain the confidence of the majority of MPs within 30 days. If it loses the confidence vote, the president will entrust a parliamentary coalition to form an alternative government. If this coalition failed to gain the confidence of the majority of MPs, parliament would be considered dissolved and the country would be invited to elect a new parliament. Prime Minister Sherif Ismail told a business conference in Dubai Tuesday that his policy statement will focus on three challenges: reinforcing internal stability, achieving social justice, and completing Egypt's democratic transition. source:Ahram Online
