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The veteran president’s announcement in a televised address to the nation drew angry jeers from demonstrators who again defied a curfew to spend the night in the capital Cairo’s Tahrir Square — epicentre of the eight straight days of protests.
His insistence that he would remain at the helm to oversee the transition also fell far short of the demands of opposition groups that have set him a Friday deadline to quit to allow a clear break with his 30-year rule.
Despite years of studied ambiguity over whether he would seek a new term in September and his refusal until this week to name a vice president, the 82-year-old incumbent insisted that he had never intended to stay on office beyond this year.
“I say in all honesty, and without taking into consideration the current situation, I was not planning to present myself for a new presidential term,” he said.
“I have spent enough time serving Egypt and its people.
“This country, I have lived in it, I have gone to war for it, and history will judge me,” he said to boos from the thousands of protesters still gathered long after nightfall in Tahrir Square.
He said the country had a choice “between chaos and stability” after the clashes between protesters and security personnel that marred the first days of the protests leaving an estimated 300 people dead.
“I speak to you in difficult conditions which put Egypt and its people to the test and which could drag it into the unknown,” he said.
“My first responsibility is now to bring security and stability to the nation to ensure a peaceful transition of power.”
Mubarak pledged to introduce amendments to the constitution to limit the head of state’s term of office and to make it easier for opposition groups to field candidates in presidential elections.-AFP
Online Reporter