The April 6 Youth Movement has called on presidential candidates Abdel Moneim Abouel Fotouh, Khaled Ali and Hamdeen Sabbahi to form a team to face candidates they called remnants of the former Mubarak regime and “supporters of Israel," according to a Tuesday report in Al-Masry Al-Youm.
“April 6 is currently coordinating with the three presidential hopefuls to convince them to form a coalition for contesting the election on one electoral platform,” said Ahmed Maher, the movement’s general coordinator, in a public statement.
Maher said the electoral platforms of the three candidates have common characteristics that will help the country progress.
However, he admitted that the movement is struggling to convince the three candidates to stand as one.
The April 6 effort may be assisted by presidential hopeful Hamdeen Sabbahi, who has launched an initiative to unite the Egyptian people behind a single revolutionary presidential candidate to increase the hopeful’s chances of defeating remnants of the Mubarak regime.
The initiative comprises two main components. The first would have the Muslim Brotherhood drop its candidates from the presidential race in support of a revolutionary candidate.
The second calls for the organization of a public debate between the revolutionary candidates and members of the public, well-known and devoted activists, and revolutionary groups to decide on a single candidate.
In a statement, Sabbahi said the revolution is now facing a real risk since figures from the Mubarak regime have chosen to run.
"Everyone must unite against the same target," Sabbahi said.
Sabbahi went on to say that the real concern is "attempts to distort and manipulate the election," as well as foreign and internal forces’ imposition of certain candidates that fit their own interests.
He then called on the Brotherhood and its Freedom and Justice Party to stick to their previous yearlong declarations that they would not field a presidential candidate to maintain the balance of political powers.
Sabbahi requested the Brotherhood and its party return to their patriotic and revolutionary role "by searching for a candidate affiliated with the revolutionary camp, in order to support him in the upcoming presidential election."
He said this must coincide with the search for a national consensus on the restructuring of the Constituent Assembly according to clear criteria that ensure the fair and balanced representation of all social groups.
Sabbahi's initiative included an invitation for all revolutionary presidential candidates to engage in "more mutual openness and serious, objective dialogue between each other."
