issued a new constitutional amendments which will grant the Egyptian president more power.
Today-(Thursday/22/2012) President Morsi issued constitutional amendments that placed him above judicial oversight and ordered the retrial of Hosni Mubarak for the killing of protesters in last year’s uprising. The president also decreed immunity for the Islamist-dominated panel drafting a new constitution from any possible court verdict to dissolve it.
The decree, which also dismisses Egypt’s prosecutor general Mr. Abdel Meguid Mahmud, whom the president failed to oust last month, prompted opposition figure Mohamed ElBaradei to accuse Morsi of usurping authority and becoming a “new pharaoh”.
Within minutes of the announcement, the new prosecutor Mr.Talaat Ibrahim Abdallah was shown on television being sworn in.
“The president can issue any decision or measure to protect the revolution,” says the presidential spokesman Yasser Ali. “The constitutional declarations, decisions and laws issued by the president are final and not subject to appeal.” The presidential spokesman added.
Liberal and Christian members withdrew from the assembly to protest what they say is the hijacking of the process by the president’s allies.
Protesters opposing and supporting president Morsi took to the streets of Cairo soon after the decree was announced.
Mohamed Morsi Isa El-Ayyat is the fifth and current President of Egypt.