Army colonel Ahmed Konsowa who recently announced his candidacy for the 2018 Egyptian presidential election received a six-year prison sentence on Tuesday, after a military trial was held against him on charges of violating military rules \u2013 which stipulate non-participation in politics from its service personnel.<\/p>\n
Assaed Haikel, Konsowa\u2019s lawyer, told Egypt Independent on Tuesday that he will look into legal measures to appeal the sentence for the former presidential hopeful.<\/p>\n
Haikel explained that Konsowa was accused of violating military rules after expressing his political views in the video announcing his candidacy, as well as wearing his military uniform for purposes not related to military service.<\/p>\n
Egypt\u2019s military prosecution recently detained Konsowa for a period of 15 days following his announcement his bid for the presidency.<\/p>\n
Konsowa\u2019s bid had made him the third candidate for the presidency, after rights lawyer Khalid Ali and former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq also declared their candidacy.<\/p>\n
His wife, who preferred not to reveal her name, previously helped shed light on the situation, although revealed she was unaware of his presidential intention.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not know that he was intending to run for the 2018 presidential elections,\u201d she remarked, and said that once she was made aware, she and the rest of their family supported him.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was a good and competent army officer and he previously handed in his resignation from the army to be able to practice politics,\u201d she revealed.<\/p>\n
However, she says Konsowa\u2019s resignation request has not yet been processed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe [Konsowa\u2019s family] are now safe and we have not received any threats,\u201d she assured.<\/p>\n
Konsowa\u2019s candidacy was a surprise announcement due to his lack of a reputation in Egyptian politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am Colonel Ahmed Konswa, an architect military officer for the Egyptian Armed Forces\u201d he said in a video statement, while expressing his faith in Egypt\u2019s ability to continue thriving.<\/p>\n
\u201dI would like to confirm that the story of justice and freedom is impossible to be ended on Egyptian soil,\u201d he went on, adding that Egypt will never be a failed or divided state, \u201cThis is not going to happen at present, and will not happen forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI proudly declare that I seek to unlock the current political deadlock by running for the anticipated Egyptian presidential election, according to its terms and conditions as defined by the Egyptian constitution and relevant laws \u2013 in the light of objectives and demands of January 25th and June 30th Revolutions.\u201d<\/p>\n
Konsowa emphasized that he does not belong to any existing established party, but instead belongs to \u201cthe comprehensive mainstream of the Egyptian people.\u201d<\/p>\n
He further explained how the strength and unity of the nation and its military are not controversial issues for him, but are his primary focus.<\/p>\n
He stated that policies which are \u201cinappropriate, counterproductive and outdated\u201d fuel extremism and discontent in Egypt.<\/p>\n
Konsowa said that, following his video statement, he would announce his envisioned road-map for the upcoming presidential term \u201cfor the sake of an equitable, scientifically advanced, independent, and fully sovereign Egypt.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has not yet announced his candidacy for next year\u2019s elections. However, he is widely expected to run for a second term.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Army colonel Ahmed Konsowa who recently announced his candidacy for the 2018 Egyptian presidential election received a six-year prison sentence on Tuesday, after a military trial was held against him on charges of violating military rules \u2013 which stipulate non-participation in politics from its service personnel. Assaed Haikel, Konsowa\u2019s lawyer, told Egypt Independent on Tuesday […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7863],"tags":[29459,29460,29461,26359],"class_list":["post-60863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english-section","tag-ahmed-konsowa","tag-army-colonel","tag-assaed-haikel","tag-presidential-election"],"yoast_head":"\n