The Journalists Syndicate is challenging an administrative court verdict issued in March to suspend its midterm elections for a chairperson and six board members.
In a statement, the syndicate said it is confident the court would restore its democratic electoral process.
“If the board members themselves did not mind, why suspend?” wondered board member Hesham Younis. “Only the general assembly of next March has the final say in this issue.”
Tarek Darwish, the journalist who filed the lawsuit requesting that the current board continues, said the board had announced certain actions it would take to resolve problems of opposition newspapers, and thus should be given the chance to implement them.
Two prominent journalists have announced their candidacy for syndicate chief in elections planned for next month. They are Abdel Mohsen Salama, managing editor of state-run newspaper Al-Ahram, and Diaa Rashwan, president of Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies.
The vote is set to take place on 1 March.
Syndicate head Mamdouh al-Wali, Al-Ahram’s chairperson, who has close ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, had earlier said he will not run in the election, and it is unclear which candidate Islamist-leaning members are likely to support.
