Head of General union of pensioners, El-Badri Farghly (C) during a previous press conference
Almost two years after he had clinched a "historical" judicial ruling in favour of pensioners, renowned Egyptian labour rights leader El-Badri Farghaly passed away on Monday at the age of 74 due to complications following surgery.
The news was announced by the leftist political party Al-Tagammu, which Farghaly was an prominent member of since its foundation in 1978.
Born in 1947 in Port Said governorate, Farghaly started his career in the 1960s as a worker at the port of the Suez Canal city before he drifted into public affairs work through the country's local councils in 1979.
Eleven years later, he was elected in the People's Assembly, presently known as the House of Representatives, four times in a row during the 30-year tenure of former president Hosni Mubarak.
From 1990 to 2010, the late MP was an advocate of labourers' rights and a voice of dissent against the economic policies and performance of Mubarak-era ministers.
Mubarak-era finance minister Youssef Boutros-Ghali had repeatedly been assailed by the late MP in objection to his performance, especially the pension law that Boutros-Ghali proposed back then and his management of pension funds.
Farghaly was also elected in the 2011 People's Assembly, Egypt's first post-Mubarak legislative body, which was dissolved a year later by a verdict issued by the Egyptian High Constitutional Court.
Following his parliamentary role, he presided over the Egyptian General Union of Pensioners.
On 21 February 2019, Farghaly won a court ruling in favour of pensioners, under which they were paid overdue bonuses at a rate of 80 percent of the basic salary. He later described the verdict as a "historical" step.
In his latest TV interview in 2018, Farghaly said he would defend workers' rights "from the cradle to the grave."
Several Egyptian political parties expressed their condolences for the passing of the former MP.
Short link: