During Monday’s parliamentary session, MPs blasted the government-backed privatization process, which they blamed for the forced dismissal of thousands of Egyptian workers within recent years.
"We should stop pandering to private investors and selling our national assets on the cheap," said opposition MP Hamdin Sabahi, calling for the amendment of existing legislation regulating investment.
Independent MP Gamal Zahran described government privatization policies as "corrupt."
"The government has squandered public wealth," he said, calling for the return of privatized companies to the ownership of company workers. He also requested that Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif regularly attend parliamentary sessions devoted to labor issues, particularly given the many labor protests that have been organized recently.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mufid Shehab, for his part, defended government privatization policies. "The government protects all workers," he said. "We shouldn’t draw hasty conclusions about these protests."
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
