Egypt’s House of Representatives on Wednesday elected the leadership of 25 specialized committees, with the Nation’s Future Party taking the largest share of committee chairs under agreements between pro-government parties, a parliamentary source told Al Manassa.
The committees are widely seen as the House’s main working bodies, shaping draft laws and scrutinizing government performance, which often makes their leadership a key measure of parliamentary power.
Seven former ministers won committee chair posts aligned with their previous portfolios.
El-Sayed El-Quseir, ex-agriculture minister and National Front Party MP, now chairs the Agriculture Committee.
Former petroleum minister Tarek El-Molla heads the Energy and Environment Committee.
Mohamed Saafan, who previously served as manpower minister, leads the Manpower Committee.
Independent Sameh Shoukry, Egypt’s former foreign minister, was elected chair of the Foreign Relations Committee.
Mahmoud Shaarawy, once local development minister, now chairs the Local Administration Committee.
Former civil aviation minister Mohamed Abbas Helmy was chosen to lead the Defense and National Security Committee.
Ashraf El-Shihy, who served as higher education minister, won the chair of the Education and Scientific Research Committee.
In addition, former parliamentary affairs minister Alaa Fouad was elected an undersecretary of the Legislative Committee.
Some committees barred journalists from attending the ballot, while the Planning and Budget Committee held a competitive vote for two undersecretary seats. Mostafa Salem, an MP from Nation’s Future, and Abdel-Moneim Emam, head of the Justice Party, won the posts.
For the committee’s secretary-general seat, Akmal Nagaty, affiliated with the Coordination Committee of Parties’ Youth Leaders and Politicians, ran against Taha El-Shahawy and won.
A parliamentary source, who requested anonymity, said pro-government parties, including Nation’s Future, Homeland Defenders, the Republican People’s Party, and the National Front, agreed on the division of committee chairmanships.
Under the understandings, Nation’s Future won 12 committee chairs, Homeland Defenders won six, the National Front won four, and the Republican People’s Party won one, the source said.
In addition to Shoukry, one other independent secured a chairmanship: Mohamed Eid Mahgoub, a senior judicial figure once tipped to become House Speaker, was elected to lead the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee.
Opposition MPs, members of the youth coordination bloc, and smaller parties were allocated undersecretary and secretary-general posts, the source said. The Egyptian Democratic Party won two undersecretary seats, with Ehab Mansour elected undersecretary of the Manpower Committee and Maha Abdel Nasser elected undersecretary of the Communications and Information Technology Committee.
The Reform and Development Party also won two posts, with Rawya Mokhtar elected second undersecretary of the Manpower Committee and Mohamed Farid elected undersecretary of the Human Rights Committee.
The Justice Party’s Haidy El-Moghazy won an undersecretary seat on the Foreign Relations Committee, while Yasser El-Hodiby of the Wafd Party took an undersecretary seat on the Human Rights Committee. Nation’s Future MP Tarek Radwan remained chair of the Human Rights Committee.
Committee membership also shifted for several MPs compared with the previous legislative term. Amr Darwish, affiliated with the youth coordination bloc, moved from the Local Administration Committee to the Tourism and Civil Aviation Committee. Tarek Shoukry became chair of the Economic Affairs Committee after previously serving as an undersecretary on the Housing Committee.
Three women MPs chaired committees under the understandings. Thoraya Badawy was elected to head the Culture and Media Committee, Sahar Talaat Mostafa heads the Tourism and Civil Aviation Committee, and Randa Mostafa leads the Social Solidarity and Family Committee. Women also won seven undersecretary seats and five secretary-general posts.
The House opened the first session of its third legislative term on Monday, electing Counselor Hisham Badawi as speaker.
