Egyptian presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Abouel Fotouh estimated the number of people affiliated with Salafi groups in Egypt at around 20 times the number of Muslim Brotherhood members.
No official estimates relating to the number of Brotherhood members are available. However, unofficial reports estimate their numbers between 400,000 to 700,000 members.
In an interview with the privately-owned satellite TV channel Tahrir channel late Saturday, Abouel Fotouh said, “I’m happy with their [Salafis] engagement in political activities and founding parties.”
Abouel Fotouh rejected the presidential nomination of the Islamic scholar Mohamed Selim al-Awa.
Earlier, news reports claimed that the Brotherhood supports Awa to spite Abouel Fotouh, a dissident from the group who decided to run for president despite orders not to.
Speaking about Awa, he said, “I appreciate him, but I’m against his nomination. I believe it’s better for him to remain an Islamic scholar. At the end, the choice will be the people’s.”
He declined to join Awa in a coalition for presidency, saying, “Awa rejected the idea, and thus ended the issue.”
Abouel Fotouh described some Brotherhood leaders as acting like police and added he differentiates members of the group from its leaders, “whose behavior I wasn’t satisfied with.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition
