The Cairo Criminal Court will issue its verdict in the two cases against former Housing Minister Mohamed Ibrahim Suleiman on 29 March.
Suleiman, Magdy Rasekh, father-in-law of ousted President Mubarak’s son, Alaa, and others are charged with profiteering, squandering public funds and acquisition of state-owned land in the first case, known as the SODIC case.
In the second case, Suleiman, together with businessmen Yehia al-Komy and Emad al-Hazek, are charged with squandering public funds by allocating plots of land in residential areas of New Cairo to Hazek’s relatives.
In his defense, Suleiman said that he developed Cairo’s satellite cities, such as Sheikh Zayed City, Al-Obour City, Al-Shorouk City, 6th of October City and New Cairo, and that he was the first to develop “shantytowns.”
He also said that there was LE15 billion in his ministry’s account, but that other ministers gave former Finance Minister Boutros-Ghali LE5 billion as a reward for appointing them to the government.
Translated from Al-Masry Al-Youm
