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Cairo:
Mohamed ElBaradei pulled out of the race for the Egyptian
presidency on Saturday, alleging “the previous regime” was still
running the country which has been without a head of state since Hosni Mubarak was deposed last year.
ElBaradei said the military rulers who took over from Mubarak have
governed “as if no revolution took place and no regime has
fallen.”
ElBaradei, who said he intends to work with youth groups from
outside the system to push for democracy and social justice,
echoed fears that the military would not give up power to future
elected rulers.
“I reviewed the best ways to serve the goals of the revolution in
light of this reality, and I found none within the official
framework, including (running for) the presidency,” new agency
Associated Press quoted him as saying.
"I had said from the start that my conscience will not allow me to
run for president or any official position unless there is a real
democratic framework, that upholds the essence of democracy and
not only its form."
The military rulers have said they will transfer power after
presidential elections, to be held before the end of June. But
many expect a fierce struggle over the military's future
privileges.
ElBaradei has grown critical of the military rulers management of
the transition, at times saying it was “royally” mishandled. He
had said he tried to advise them but grew impatient with what many
said were the generals' desire to monopolize decision-making and
focus on maintaining their interests.
Popular presidential candidate Amr Moussa said he hoped ElBaradei
would continue his efforts to rebuild Egypt.
“I regret ElBaradei’s withdrawal from the race, and I value his
role and participation in the developments that Egypt has
witnessed recently,” Moussa said on his Twitter account.
The Muslim Brotherhood, whose associated political party looks
poised to take more than 40 percent of the seats in the next
Parliament, has also indicated that it might not field a
candidate.
But with the largest share of parliamentary seats, the Brotherhood
is set to dominate the process by which a committee that will be
entrusted with the writing of the country's new constitution is
picked — a situation that some liberals and youth groups fear will
produce a bargain in which the army continues to control the
executive power, but allows conservatives to control the writing
of the constitution.
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