CAIRO: The likely presidential candidate, Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh, asked the scholar and likely presidential candidate, Mohamed Salim al-Awa, not to run for presidential elections and to sustain his position as a prominent Islamic scholar. I respect al-Awa, and his services as a scholar will be better for Egypt than his services if he was president, said Aboul Foutouh. If the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) asks me to run in the elections as a candidate who represents, I will not accept this and I will run as an independent candidate, said Fotouh. He also said that he accepts the MB's role as a missionary group that functions away from political competition. There is no hidden agreement between me and the MB regarding the elections, said Aboul Foutouh. I am not a chameleon, said Aboul Fotouh during a conference that was held yesterday in Monofiya to present his electoral program. Aboul Fotouh emphasized that the best thing about the January 25 Revolution is that it was led by the Egyptian people only, without any political agendas. A lot of confusion has been taking place lately, and this bothers a lot of the revolution's followers, said Aboul Fotouh. But Egyptians who were brought up by religious values are capable of protecting their revolution, he added. He said that the free people are going to choose their president, and that the president should ask himself what he can do for the interest of Egypt. Even if the next president comes into power by American support, he must put the interest of Egypt at the top of his priority list, said Aboul Fotouh. Aboul Foutouh denied that there is no law of the state in the country and he emphasized that the former regime tries to spread rumors that say there is no stability in the country. That is why I asked the current Minister of Interior, Mansour el-Issawy, to resign for participating in spreading these rumors, said Aboul Fotouh. He said that he respects all political groups that exist in Egypt, and that a lot of them are better than the Islamic groups. Aboul Fotouh emphasized that the next Friday demonstration will advocate national unity that regains the values of the revolution. He also said that the political powers have three demands including setting a schedule to establish a new political regime, speeding up the trials of those responsible of the killing of demonstrators during the revolution along with increase wages by examining the budget.
