Egypt’s minister of health, Ashraf Hatem, has confirmed that the ministry has not received any offers from abroad to meet the expenses incurred by ousted president Hosni Muabark and his wife’s treatment, contrary to media reports. Hatem added that Egypt is capable of covering the treatment costs of all its citizens and that any offer to step in will be refused by the government.
Hatem added that the ministry is yet to receive the medical bills for both Mubarak and his wife and that the figures reported in the media are inaccurate. "Once we receive the bills, the expenses will be announced clearly and with complete transparency and will be then sent to the public prosecutor to define the authority that will cover these expenses," said Hatem.
Mubarak has been hospitalised in Sharm El-Sheikh’s International Hospital since falling ill during questioning by the Illicit Gains Authority on 12 April. Many political forces have demanded that the ousted president spend his detention period in a Cairo prison hospital. His health has so far been officially attributed as preventing him from being transported to the capital.
Earlier yesterday, media reports quoted a senior official in the Health Ministry as saying that members of the UAE and Saudi Arabia’s royal families have offered to cover the expenses of the Mubaraks’ treatment. This follows reports last week that the couple will not be treated at the state’s expense.
Short link: