MB Leaders: We Will Maintain Our Peaceful Reformist Method

MB Leaders: Despite Regime’s Shura Riggings, We Will Maintain Our Peaceful Reformist Method

 

Egyptian Shura Council midterm elections were wrapped up with a previously expected result, scandalous rigging for the ruling National Democratic Party’s (NDP) candidates at the expense of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) candidates who were prevented from winning any seat although the very same group garnered 88 seats in 2005 legislative elections .

 

The elections are over but the confrontation between the moderate Islamic group and the Egyptian regime that rigged the elections and arrested many MB supporters (more than 700 candidates).

 

Ikhwanweb interviewed Muslim Brotherhood leaders to know their views regarding the elections.

 

 

 

 

Aboul-Fotouh :

What happened in the elections is a setback. They have distorted the image and history of Egypt

 

Dr. Abdel Moneim Abul Fotouh, the member of the Executive Bureau of the Muslim Brotherhood said:


The Shura Council elections can’t be considered elections. This is because real elections comprise a real representation of people and their votes and encouraging gpeople to vote for the most suitable person. These criteria are known all over the world but they haven’t been applied in Monday’s elections. The Egyptian regime prevented MB candidates from campaigning by any means, and tore their posters and means of campaigning and prevented their election hustings and rallies and arrested their supporters.

 

Aboul-Fotouh added that the second criterion for holding sound elections is allowing voters to go to polling stations to cast their votes. This didn’t happen. The Egyptian government prevented citizens from voting specially in constituencies that include MB candidates and closed committees and harassed  citizens in other committees.

 

As for the third criterion of securing sound elections, Dr. Abd Al-Moneim said:” The regime’s followers stuffed ballot boxes with fabricated ballots which were documented by media services and human rights watchdogs. Unfortunately, What happened in the elections is a setback. They have distorted the image and history of Egypt

 

Asked about the Muslim Brotherhood’s post-Shura election agenda, he said ” Expecting all these violations, we aimed at stirring the stalled Egyptian street and to have contacts with people. We wanted to tell all the Egyptian people that they have a duty to seek reform and remove all forms of corruption in Egypt . Thus, we will maintain our peaceful method and insist on maintaining the comprehensive political reform process for our homeland. We have sacrificed more than 1000 Muslim Brotherhood members who are detained on politically motivated charges. We know that we must sacrifice many things for reform in Egypt , but we will continue in our peaceful method and we will never let our beloved homeland Egypt fall a prey to thieves, corrupter and saboteurs.”

 

Dr Abd Al-Moneim defended participating in the elections, saying:” both boycotting and participating in the elections are ways of exercising pressures on the regime. We chose a positive participation because this adds more pressures on the dictatorial regime.

 

Aboul-Fotouh concluded that the method of peaceful change is slow but will safely lead to results which are more effective than a revolution that devastates every thing, the latter is something the Muslim Brotherhood doesn’t want.

 

Morsi :

Silly rigging methods. The president was among the first to violate the constitutional amendments

 

As for Dr. Mohamed Morsi, a top leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, said about the Shura elections:

The regime has adopted repressive and illegal security measures to rigg the elections. Voters were denied access to polling stations, stuffing ballot boxes with fabricated ballots, and giving some candidates 100 thousand votes although the turnout hasn’t reached such figures. These measures recurred in constituencies that include MB candidates. Supported by bullies, the security forces assaulted and intimidated citizens. These elections witnessed a very low turnout due to fears from State Security Police assaults.

 

Monday’s elections give a gloomy image of the future of Egypt in case the regime maintains such unconstitutional methods that deform the image of the country. These elections show that the notorious constitutional were passed to allow only those loyal to the president to unfairly succeed. The president himself did not abide by these amendments and violated them through cracking down on the opposition powers, specially the Muslim Brotherhood candidates, and rigged the elections in a very silly and naive manner, added Morsi.

 

Morsi pointed out that peaceful change does not happen overnight and the elections aren’t the only indication for changing the society. The elections are only a means for raising people’s awareness. They are a wakeup call for people to make them demand their rights and to effectively participate in the poetical life to show how to what exten the regime is unjust in its treatment with people and to what extent it doesn’t care for interests of the society. Compare the society thirty years ago with nowadays society and you will find out that the peaceful has had an effective impact. People were unware of many things while they are now aware of their political rights an know very well that there are House, Shura, municipal and syndicate elections. People’s aware is expanding and injustice and tyranny are shrinking gradually. We still have our means for a peaceful change in all fields and positiveness is continuously increasing.

 

Al Erian :

Peaceful change starts when people change their manners and demand their rights

 

As for Dr. Essam El-Erian, the leader in the Muslim Brotherhood group, he said:” The elections are a means for expressing people’s will. Peaceful change starts only people start to change themselves as much as manners and conduct are concerned in addition to demand their rights. The Muslim Brotherhood and other compatriots should spread among people to raise their awareness of their  rights and how to restore them.  The elections aren’t the only means for reflecting people’s will. People can show their rejection to the wrong status quo through speech and through hating them in their hearts if they can’t speak out or change it with an action, according to a Hadith (saying) of our messenger Mohammed- peace be upon him.

 

“There are many peaceful means through which people can reject the current injustice and corruption. Just look at other nations and their reactions to injustices and dictatorships, The Egyptians should learn from others and form their own experience, not just copycat others” added El-Erian.

 

Dr. Essam El-Erian hinted that one of the main reasons to the mushrooming corruption in Egypt is the current disintegration and fragmentation of the Egyptian opposition.

 

“The only solution is that all opposition powers and people agree on a unified agenda to force the dictator regime into stopping corruption and tyranny which are dominating our country” added the MB leader.



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