CAIRO - Recently appointed Prime Minister Kamal el-Ganzouri will declare on Wednesday formation of a government of national salvation, but it still awaits the approval of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF). The SCAF has decided to grant el-Ganzouri more powers than previous prime ministers, after politicians and protesters accused the military of failing to give the former Cabinet enough control over policy. El-Ganzouri said the Army was set to issue a decree on Tuesday to amend the interim Constitution so that the Prime Minister would hold "all presidential powers, except concerning the judiciary and the armed forces". El-Ganzouri, who was appointed about two weeks ago, had postponed the declaration of the new Cabinet, as he couldn't find a minister of interior and some ministerial nominees refused certain portfolios. He has now finished forming the new interim Cabinet that will lead the country for the remainder of the transitional period, under the guidance of the SCAF. Some of the names of the ministers have already been revealed, with some in the outgoing Cabinet are expected to keep their jobs, including International Co-operation Minister Fayza Abul Naga and Electricity Minister Hassan Younis. El-Ganzouri, who was re-appointed as Egypt's Premier last month after his predecessor Essam Sharaf was relieved of his duties, met on Tuesday with some of the ministerial nominees to discuss the plan for the near future. The appointment of el-Ganzouri, 78, has been criticised by protesters seeking a full purge of the system because he served as Prime Minister in the 1990s under Hosni Mubarak. State media previously said about half the Cabinet would keep the posts they held under the outgoing Premier, Sharaf. At least two ministers staying on served when Mubarak was still in office and have survived successive reshuffles, the media added. Critics accused Sharaf's Cabinet of not carrying out deep enough reforms of the police force, which was hated for the way it crushed dissent under Mubarak. Police were also accused of heavy-handed tactics in violent clashes with demonstrators last month and the protests pushed the Army to accept the resignation of Sharaf's Cabinet. Protesters in Cairo and other cities demanding an immediate end to military rule faced tear gas, pellets and rubber bullets in clashes that killed 42 people. They also accused police of firing live rounds. Officials denied this. On Monday night, dozens of protesters in Tahrir Square removed the barricades blocking traffic from Qasr al-Aini Street. As traffic started flowing into the square, the protesters, armed with sticks, cheered and chanted: “The real revolutionaries are opening the square.” However, another group of protesters blocked cars before they could reach the square, forcing them to turn back, then replaced the barricades to block the traffic once more.
