Khaled Ali (Photo: Mai Shaheen)
Labour lawyer and presidential candidate Khaled Ali on Sunday warned against a possible court decision to reverse the renationalisation of four major companies.
Shibin El-Kom Textiles, Omar Effendi and the Tanta Flax and Oil Company were among four companies returned to public ownership in summer 2011 in a decision hailed as a landmark by workers who had lost their jobs as a result of the companies' original privatisation.
On 4 April, judges will hear an appeal of the 2011 renationalisation decision filed by the government of Prime Minister Kamal El-Ganzouri.
Furthermore, Ali stressed that the main role of the State Litigation Authority – the body that will hear the appeal – should be to protect and support public finances. He also said that the privatisation of factories would marginalise workers and weaken the national economy.
In addition, Ali is one of the lawyers filing a lawsuit on behalf of workers at the Assiut Cement Company against the company's head and the leader of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces challenging the company's privatisation.
On Friday, Ali was on the campaign trail in Ismailia, where he commented on the need for the Muslim Brotherhood to carefully distinguish between religious preaching and politics.
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