Secretary General of the People's Assembly Sami Mahran announced on Tuesday his resignation from the post he has held for decades.
News reports said Mahran had already submitted his resignation to Shura Council Speaker Ahmed Fahmy. Mahran was referred to a criminal court last month on charges of illegal gains.
In his comments, Mahran said, "I submitted [my resignation] willingly, as nobody asked for my resignation."
Mahran told Al-Masry Al-Youm that he had been considering resigning for three days, and made the decision after decades of public service to focus on his personal life. He stressed he would not backtrack on the resignation decision, adding he did not discuss with Fahmy any subject other than his resignation.
The Illicit Gains Authority referred Mahran to trial on 17 September on charges of using his influence to amass illegal wealth, estimated at LE22 million.
The authority demanded that Mahran return the money in addition to paying a fine. It also decided to release Mahran on LE50,000 bail.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
