CAIRO: Fathi Sorour, Speaker of the People's Assembly (PA), turned down a request to remove president of Al-Wafd opposition party Mahmoud Abaza, from his position as head of the party's parliamentary delegation. The request was filed by Ahmed Nasser, vice president of Al-Wafd party, according to Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour, secretary general of the party. A recent court verdict had ruled in favor of Noaman Gomaa, former president of Al-Wafd, validating his position as the official president of party and head of its PA delegation. Gomaa, who ran against President Hosni Mubarak in the 2005 presidential elections, was ousted from Al-Wafd when conflicts arose between him and some of the party's members a few months after the elections. However Abdel Nour told Daily News Egypt that "everything is fine with the party right now and Dr Sorour's position is crystal clear. Abdel Nour explained that the PA generally bases such rulings in accordance with decisions by the party's general committee - which in this case voted for Abaza to be its president and representative in the PA. Abdel Nour added that "Gomaa is staying at home, and confirmed that he makes no appearances at the party's headquarters. But in a telephone interview with daily talk show "Al-Beit Betak, Gomaa said he had won the case he filed against Al-Wafd party's current president and that the court had ruled in his favor. While Abaza has filed a case to appeal Gomaa's verdict, Gomaa told the press that the verdict could not be appealed.
