Leading Muslim Brotherhood figure Mahmoud Ezzat said Thursday that he believed the Egyptian people would vote for the Islamist group in both the upcoming presidential runoffs and new parliamentary elections, in a statement to Al-Ahram Arabic language news website.
His comments follow the verdict of the High Constitutional Court (HCC), which saw Egypt's Parliament dissolved, as the elections of one third of the parliamentary seats reserved for individual candidates, were deemed unconstitutional.
The Political Disenfranchisement Law was also rejected by the courts, giving former regime figure Ahmed Shafiq the green light to face the Brotherhood's candidate Mohamed Mursi in the 16 - 17 June presidential runoffs.
“We are waiting to read the rationale of verdicts issued by the HCC so the Muslim brotherhood can comment officially,” Ezzat added. The Brotherhood member also speculated about the timing of the ruling, as the constitutional court had previously taken years to reach its final verdict, citing the three-year decision to declare the 1987 parliamentary elections unconstitutional and to dissolve the parliament.
Dina Zakaria, co-founder of the Brotherhood's Committee for Foreign Relations told Ahram Online, "The Brotherhood are still following experts reactions; we believe it’s a political situation not a constitutional one."
"The counter-revolution is trying to revive the old regime and will not accept civilian rule," she added, explaining that Egyptians from all political backgrounds should jointly decide on how to deal with the current situation.
Zakaria also added that throughout the year-and-a-half long transition period the ruling military council had managed to successful portray a "false" image of the revolution, causing the general public to become "fed up ... disappointed and confused by what is happening."
Nevertheless, she added, she believed that they could overcome the negative developments and defeat the counter-revolution. "We should try to understand the reaction in the street and be patient, as we will eventually succeed," she concluded.
MP Ahmed Abdel-Rahman of the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party also commented on the verdict telling Al-Ahram Arabic language news website that the Islamist group is ready to run in the expected parliamentary elections.
