CAIRO - Members of the dissolved local councils have expressed mixed reactions to a ruling passed by the Supreme Administrative Court on Tuesday, in which it ruled that the acting government should dissolve the nation's local councils within one month. Dissolving these councils was one of the main demands of the January 25 revolution that ousted former president Hosni Mubarak. “It is a decision that was expected,” Ahmed Awad, the head of Alexandria Governorate's Municipal Council, told Al-Messa Arabic evening newspaper. In 2008, political activists widely accused the then ruling regime of rigging the municipal elections. The majority of the councils' members belonged to Mubarak's now-defunct National Democratic Party. Awad, expressed happiness and satisfaction at the court ruling. “The court ruling is in favour of the councils' members. Now, the members will enjoy a rest,”he said. Abdel-Gawad Hassan, the Secretary-General of Alexandria Governorate's Municipal Council, said: “The ruling will not in practice have any positive impact. The municipal councils' official holiday consists of July and August, runs through during which campaigning for the parliamentary elections will be held.” The Mubarak regime benefited from over 54,000 members of the ruling National Democratic Party in councils, who ultimately supported the former despotic regime. “Following the January 25 revolution, none of the council's recommendations and decisions have been put into force. Thugs nowadays control the Alexandria's streets and facilities,” Mounir Abdel-Hadi, the head of the Transportation Committee at Alexandria governorate's Municipal Council, told the same newspaper. Alternatively, another member of the dissolved councils claimed the court verdict is unlawful. “The ruling has contradicted the Egyptian laws. It's illegal to dissolve the whole councils with one order [ruling]. In addition, the government has no right to form temporary municipal councils,” asserted Ahmed Fouad, the head of Sharqiya Governorate's Municipal Council. According to him, Law No. 43 of 1979 stipulates that the new elections will be held within 60 days, which will coincide with parliamentary elections. “Instead, the 1,056-member-strong permanent committees of the current municipal councils can run the councils' daily affairs,” he said. “In fact, the Ministry of Local Development assumes the responsibility for applying the ruling and its sequences. The Ministry has many options and alternatives to implement,” said Maher el-Domiaty, the Governor of the Upper Egyptian Governorate of Beni Sueif”. Meanwhile, a youth coalition in the Suez Governorate has formed public groups to take care of the people's affairs. “The historic ruling is a fruit of the January 25 revolution, which called for freedom and democracy. The coalition has formed public groups to implement the ordinary people's demands,” read a statement issued by the Youth love Egypt Coalition group based in the town of Qantara.
