CNN, an American news channel, hosted a debate two days ago titled “The Future of Egypt.” Participating in the debate were Mohamed ElBaradei, former director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ahmed Ezz, general secretary of the National Democratic Party, and Saad Eddin Ibrahim, a member of the Egyptian Organization Coalition.
During the satellite-linked debate, ElBaradei repeated his claim that his main goal is not to become a candidate in the Egyptian presidential elections, explaining that his movement seeks to “make the government understand that preserving the status quo will only end in an impasse.” Ezz said he welcomed the potential nomination of ElBaradei as a candidate in the upcoming elections “if he chooses such a path and if his candidacy conforms to the Constitution which is clear regarding this matter.” Ibrahim called on ElBaradei to follow the path of “civil disobedience and to make sacrifices like Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.”
ElBaradei emphasized the necessity of amending the Constitution, “as the way it is drawn up currently only allows a very limited number of people to become candidates for the presidency.” As for his ability to mobilize the masses without even an official headquarters, ElBaradei said, “I am a true agent for change to the people, but to the regime I am just a hypothetical person. I don’t have a headquarters and I am not able to collect donations; however I have a lot of volunteers in a country where I am launching a campaign for the sake of change.”
Responding to the entrance of ElBaradei onto the political scene, Ahmed Ezz said, “We welcome him into the political debate, and he has a clear path to become a candidate for the 2011 elections if he so chooses.” Commenting on the recent remarks made by Amr Moussa, general secretary of the Arab League, who said that the path to the presidency was closed, Ezz emphasized that, “the Constitution is clear in this matter, and all political parties can advance their own candidates for election, but ElBaradei is hesitant and prefers to be nominated as an independent.”
“My party has been clear in that it welcomes the inclusion of ElBaradei into the political framework,” said Ezz. Ibrahim, joining the discussion from CNN’s studio, urged ElBaradei to adopt the model of “civil disobedience,” indicating that “every leader who has taken up the cause of change has had to make sacrifices.”
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
