ECESR Motion in the Case to Nullify the Constituent Assembly
Motion Reaffirms the Invalidity of its Makeup and the Deviation of Morsi’s Decision from Public Interest
The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights filed a defense motion this morning in the case filed by Khalid Ali to nullify the Constituent Assembly selected to write the constitution against the chairman of the Joint Meeting of the People’s Assembly and the Shura Council, and which called for:
First: In urgency: Stop the implementation of the chairman of the Joint Meeting of the People’s Assembly and Shura Council’s decision for the elected members to choose the constitution’s constituent assembly, taken in 12/06/2012, including the consequent events, the most important of which is the invalidity of the constitution’s constituent assembly.
Second: (Request that was added to the requests during the hearing on 02/10/2012) in urgency: Stop the implementation of the President’s decision to ratify law 79 for the 2012 that sets the standards for the election of the Constituent Assembly’s members selected to draft the country’s new constitution, which was ratified July 11 2012 and was published in the official gazette, issue number 28 dated July 12 2012
On the subject: To cancel the challenged decisions and their consequent effects, and oblige the contested parties to pay expenses and attorney’s fees.
The motion included four main arguments:
First: The competency of the administrative judiciary to try the case.
Second: The contested decision to form a constituent assembly weakens the principle of legitimacy and rule of law.
Third: The contested decision to form the constituent assembly this way is not based on correct cause.
Fourth: The President’s decision to ratify law 79 for the year 2012 is a misuse of power.
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Why is the President’s decision considered void? Why is the President’s decision a misuse of power?
The defense’s motion states that “The insistence of the President to ratify law 79 for the year 2012 in this way aims for a political end, which is protecting the constituent assembly from being challenged, since the majority of its members are from the Freedom and Justice Party, which was headed by Dr. Mohamed Morsi, and which nominated him for the presidency. The constitutional declaration that was in effect at the time the president ratified this law gives the Military Council the authority/ power to choose the members of the constituent assembly if the courts ruled that it was invalid. Therefore, this case’s documents reveal a bitter political conflict between the Military Council and the President and his political party. Each party used its power and authority, and the decision to ratify law number 79 for the year 2012 was made, despite the dissolution of the People’s Assembly and nearly a month after the Supreme Court’s ruling. The case’s documents show that it is clear that the President’s goals were not aimed at the public good, but rather to keep his party’s and political faction’s control over the Constituent Assembly to draft the constitution.
