by Mahmoud Fouly
CAIRO, March 17 (Xinhua) -- Although the Egyptian presidency had expressed respect for a court decision of suspending parliamentary elections, its legal team later submitted an appeal against the court order, which reflects the presidency's political inconsistency and therefore undermines its credibility, analysts said.
On March 6, the Supreme Administrative Court suspended a presidential decree of holding parliamentary elections on April 22, and referred 14 claims against the constitutionality of the newly- drafted election law to the Supreme Constitutional Court.
Although the presidency expressed on the same day its respect for the court's decision and denied any intention of appealing it, State Lawsuit Authority, which represents the presidency and other bodies, appealed the ruling on March 13.
"I believe this is continuation of the presidency's state of confusion and obvious reluctance over certain decisions, including the appeal against the Supreme Administrative Court's suspension of (parliamentary) polls," Sobhi Essaila, political analyst at Al- Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies, told Xinhua.
During a court session on Sunday, the State Lawsuit Authority said that it appealed the ruling on its own, without asking permission or opinion of those represented by the Authority, including the presidency. Essaila, however, believed it was just a "justification" not to embarrass the presidency.
"Any wise institution would coordinate with its legal representative whether to appeal or not. So, the presidency has either given the green light to appeal, deceiving the public opinion; or been unaware of the appeal, which is a greater mistake, " Essaila noted.
Talaat Marzouk, head of the legal committee of the Salafist Al- Nour Party, admitted that to appeal was "a normal legal right" for the presidency. "We cannot deny the (administrative) authority its legal right to appeal, and the judiciary will have the final say, which should be respected by everyone," said Marzouk.
But if "the state of so much confusion" continues, the country will head in a quick pace into the abyss. "The presidency should realize how to manage things and be aware of its rights and duties, " said Essaila.
On Sunday, the Supreme Administrative Court decided to delay the reviewing of the appeal to March 24.
Ahmed Sayed Ahmed, political analyst and deputy managing director of state-run Al-Ahram newspaper, told Xinhua the presidency's decision to appeal the court order was "a shock" to political forces, as it contradicts the presidency's earlier position on the issue.
"It renewed concerns about the executive authority's respect for the judicial authority," said Ahmed.
What's more, the disputed election law has "constitutional blemishes," therefore the presidency's appeal is unlikely to affect the delay of elections, according to Ahmed.
The analysts noted that the presidency's credibility has been declining, since Islamist-oriented President Mohamed Morsi proved unable to keep a series of promises, including his first 100-day program to solve certain problems and his statement of not to appeal the court order.
"For a lot of Egyptians, the appeal shows much confusion on the part of the presidency and reflects that it does not study well its decisions before making them," said Ahmed.
"The change in the presidency's position certainly affirms that it is Muslim Brotherhood that rules Egypt, not President Morsi," Mohamed Aboul-Ghar, head of Egyptian Social Democratic Party and member of the main opposition bloc the National Salvation Front, told Xinhua.
The opposition would be even more reluctant to enter a dialogue with the presidency, "since the presidency is not a decision maker, " according to Aboul-Ghar.
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