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CAIRO. – Egypt’s parliament is holding the last debate on proposed amendments to the constitution that could see President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi remain in power until 2030.
Tuesday’s session comes ahead of a final vote by lawmakers on the changes to the 2014 charter, before the amendments are put on a national referendum, likely before early May when the Muslim holy month of Ramadan starts.
The proposals would only extend a president’s term in office from four to six years. But they include a special article to extend el-Sissi’s current, second term to six years and allow him to run for another six-year term in 2024.
Critics of the move argue that Egypt is slipping back into authoritarianism, eight years after a pro-democracy uprising ended autocrat Hosni Mubarak’s three-decade rule.
President el-Sisi recently took over as the African Union’s rotational chairman from Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame. – AP
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