Parliamentary and media controversy has escalated in Egypt regarding a proposal for a new draft law that the Wafd Party intends to present within days, requiring workers abroad to transfer 20 percent of their monthly income in dollars to Egyptian banks, in order to “exit the current economic crisis.”
Two days ago, the party’s head, former presidential candidate Abdul Sind Yamamah, directed the party’s parliamentary body to submit a proposal for a draft law in this regard, while providing all constitutional and legal guarantees to preserve the rights of workers.
In an exclusive interview with Sky News Arabia, Yamama believes that “the party’s proposal for the draft law includes a quick and urgent solution to increase dollar flows and get out of the current economic crisis.”
The head of the Wafd Party explained that “the party’s proposal depends on transferring 20 percent of the monthly income of workers abroad to their personal balance in Egyptian banks,” noting that this percentage is deducted from their monthly work income and not from their balances.
Yamamah explained the motivations for submitting the new draft law in the following points:
- Remittances from workers abroad declined from an average of $40 billion annually to $20 billion last year.
- The Egyptian economy is in a critical state that requires urgent solutions to provide dollar resources.
- The main sources of increasing dollar revenues, which are the Suez Canal, exports, tourism, and remittances from Egyptians, face many challenges, including the Gaza war and the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, in addition to the decline in remittances due to the parallel market.
The head of the Suez Canal Authority, Osama Rabie, had previously confirmed that the canal’s revenues had decreased by 40 percent since the beginning of the year compared to 2023, after attacks in the Red Sea led to the diversion of ships away from this corridor.
In response to what was reported about the unconstitutionality of the proposal, the head of the Wafd Party said: “We are not talking about imposing a new tax on workers abroad or deducting part of their money to donate to their country, but rather deducting a percentage of their monthly income and transferring it to a legitimate path, which is Egyptian banks.”
Egypt suffers from a dollar gap amounting to about $30 billion, and thus it needs investments amounting to $100 billion annually until 2028 in order to deal with that gap, according to what Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi announced.
The Constitution protects “private property”
However, the head of the Wafd Party proposed the draft law two days ago, sparking controversy and was rejected by members of Parliament, including representatives from the Wafd Party itself.
Mohamed Madina, a representative of the Wafd Party and a member of the Constitutional and Legislative Committee in the House of Representatives, said in an exclusive interview with Sky News Arabia that the party leader’s proposal “is a sound judgment on his part, as there is no infringement on the private property of the Egyptian citizen in accordance with the Egyptian Constitution.”
He added: “The opinion of the head of the Wafd Party is misplaced. Rather, it will have a negative impact on the financial flows of Egyptians abroad during the coming period.”
In response to the possibility of Yamama withdrawing the draft law proposal, Medina said: “If the draft law is presented to the Council, I will object to it because it is against the law.”
Regarding what was reported about an upcoming meeting of the party’s parliamentary body to discuss the proposal, the member of the House of Representatives stressed: “We have not been informed that any meeting will be held in this regard.”
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Unconstitutional
In his comment, Representative Ihab Ramzi, a member of the Constitutional and Legislative Committee in the House of Representatives, rejected the proposal to oblige workers abroad to transfer 20 percent of their monthly income in dollars.
In an interview with Sky News Arabia, Ramzi reviewed the justifications for rejecting the draft law proposal, saying:
- The proposal is rejected and unconstitutional. No one can be obligated to deduct part of his money and send it to Egypt.
- The proposal is not feasible in practice; It is difficult to determine mechanisms for its implementation.
- The proposal has negative effects on the confidence of workers abroad in the Egyptian government and banks.
Aside from the Wafd Party’s proposal, the member of the House of Representatives called for launching a campaign of soft powers that travels the world to motivate Egyptians to stand by their country, and this “will have a greater resonance without obligating them to anything,” according to his opinion.
Ramzi pointed out that incentives could be offered to Egyptians abroad, for those who transfer and serve their country.
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Media criticism
The controversy spread to the media after a number of media professionals criticized the delegation head’s proposal, considering it “illogical.”
Journalist Khaled Abu Bakr attacked Yamama’s proposal, saying: “People in exile have difficult circumstances, and we do not want to cause confusion.”
He described the “Yamama” proposal as “illogical, unacceptable, and inappropriate to present in Parliament,” in light of the difficult and harsh circumstances that Egyptians live abroad.
Media personality Amr Adeeb also commented on the proposal on his “Al-Hekaya” program, sarcastically: “I liked the proposal. I suggest that every person donate his kidney or part of his liver.”
Previous initiatives
In recent months, the state has launched several initiatives to deal with Egyptians abroad, including the “Importing Cars of Egyptians Abroad” initiative, with the customs value deposited in dollars and then recovered in pounds after 5 years.
The state also launched an initiative to grant customs exemption for gold imports from customs, ending on May 10, 2024, subjecting it only to value-added tax.
It also announced a new initiative under which Egyptians abroad were given the opportunity to settle their conscription status in exchange for transferring an amount of 5,000 dollars or euros for each person wishing to benefit from the initiative.
#Egypt. #Controversy #escalates #workers #proposal
2024-02-03 20:10:37
