Public funds prosecutors requested that 14 members of Egypt's People's Assembly be stripped of parliamentary immunity in order to be questioned over alleged violations pertaining to state-financed medical treatment.
Of the MPs involved in the case, six belong to the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) and another six to the Muslim Brotherhood opposition movement. All 14 face charges of squandering public funds and the falsification of documents.
Egypt's Attorney-General Abdel Maguid Mahmoud has reportedly urged Justice Minister Mamdouh Marei to lift the MPs' parliamentary immunity. The minister, in turn, is expected to raise the issue with People’s Assembly Speaker Fathi Sorour.
According to a recent statement issued by the Attorney-General’s office, officials from the Health Ministry and from specialized medical councils have been implicated in suspected violations.
NDP sources said that some party members had also called for the removal of implicated candidates' names from the party’s electoral college; other sources close to the case, however, say that any decision in this regard had been postponed.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
