New Egyptian Prime Minister looks the same as the old one

Egypt has a new prime minister, but many people are upset about the choice. Just prior to elections scheduled to begin on Monday, Egypt's Supreme Council of the Armed Forces appointed Kamal el-Ganzouri as the new prime minister of the country. El-Ganzouri was formally the prime minister under Mubarak.

CAIRO, EGYPT (Catholic Online) - On Friday, Ganzouri gave a statement to reporters for he acknowledged that he had been given a substantial number of powers to see Egypt through its transition to democracy.

However, protesters immediately took to the streets to reject his appointment.

Abdullah Ahmed, a university student said, "I think he was popular in his era, and successful. He did good during his period, but this is not his time."

Others were not so friendly in their criticism. Crowds surrounded a nearby cabinet offices in effort to keep Ganzouri from entering the building. They repeatedly chanted "illegitimate, illegitimate!"
The appointment follows nearly three weeks of continual clashes between protesters and police, the worst since the fall of Hosni Mubarak. Scores have been killed in the violence. Authorities have apologized for the killings of protesters.

On Friday, a truce that was negotiated on Thursday continued to hold, leaving the streets relatively quiet for the first time in weeks.

Many protesters feel that the appointment of Ganzouri represents a hijacking of the revolution. Trust in the military is gone, and the people are anxious for free elections. Those elections are scheduled to begin on Monday, and will run for two days time.

The elections will have three phases, and will eventually be concluded in March. In March, the first democratically elected government of Egypt will take power and Ganzouri school probably be asked to step down -- if he lasts that long.

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