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Wednesday, 4 October 2017

MPs elect new heads of parliamentary committees

These are the people who will be moving the Ismail government’s business agenda through the House of Representatives this fall: The House of Representatives elected the chairs of some 25 standing committees yesterday, Al Shorouk reports. Rep. Amr Ghallab from the pro-government Support Egypt Coalition — the largest political bloc in parliament — held onto the leadership of the key House Economic Committee, Al Ahram reports. This makes him the House’s point man on everything from the Bankruptcy and Capital Markets Acts to the Central Bank and Banking Act, and the committee will also likely have a voice in the drafting of government bills on universal healthcare and other pieces of interest to business.

Among the other committee chairs elected yesterday and of interest to the business community, culled from a thorough rundown by Ahram Online:

  • Budget and planning — Hussein Eissa (Support Egypt), professor of commerce and former president of Ain Shams University.
  • Industry — Ahmed Samir (Support Egypt), industrial engineer
  • Energy and environment — Mohamed Rashwan (may be subject to re-vote after business leader Talaat El Sewedy filed an appeal against the result of the vote)
  • Tourism and civil aviation — Sahar Talaat Mostafa (Support Egypt), the Alexandria business figure.
  • Healthcare — Mohamed El-Amari (Support Egypt), professor of surgery
  • Transport and communications — Hesham Abdel-Wahed (Future of the Homeland)
  • Agriculture — Hesham El-Shiini (Free Egyptians)
  • Housing and public utilities — Moataz Mahmoud (independent)
  • Labour — Gibali El-Maraghi, head of the General Egyptian Federation of Trade Unions
  • Telecoms and IT — Nidal El Said (Future of the Homeland)
  • Media, culture and antiquities — Osama Heikal (Support Egypt), former information minister and head of Media Production City.

Hot tickets: The economic, transport, local administration, energy and environment, and telecoms committee chairmanships were particularly contested, the media reports.

Do overs: Parliamentary Speaker Ali Abdel Aal also agreed to hold fresh elections for the African affairs, energy and environment, and defense and national security committees on Sunday, after the results of the first elections were appealed, Al Masry Al Youm reports.

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