Sisi supporters call for constitutional changes to secure Egyptian president's future in power
Sisi supporters call for constitutional changes to secure Egyptian president's future in power
Pro-government state-run newspaper Al-Akhbar voiced hope that 2019 would see 'the start of a belated political reform' to allow the Egyptian president to stay in power.
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Sisi's government has been widely criticised by rights groups over the repression of dissidents [Getty]
Supporters of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi are calling for constitutional changes that would allow him to stay in power once his second term ends in 2022.
Backers of the former military chief, re-elected in March with over 97 percent of the vote, want parliament to discuss repealing an article limiting presidents to two consecutive four-year terms.
In an editorial published on Sunday, the pro-government state-run daily newspaper Al-Akhbar voiced hope that 2019 would see "the start of a belated political reform" to secure Sisi's future in power.
The column by the newspaper's director Yasser Rizk said this would "preserve all the people's gains in terms of security, stability and economic recovery" since Sisi came to power five years ago,
He said the change could be approved by late summer 2019.
Sisi, who led the army's overthrow of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 following mass protests against his rule, won his first term as president the following year.
His government has been widely criticised by rights groups over the repression of dissidents.
As well as a crackdown on dissent, Sisi has overseen a military campaign against Islamic State group-linked militants in the Sinai Peninsula.
Egypt is slowly recovering from a deep economic crisis that has seen the value of its currency plummet and state subsidies slashed.
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