POLITICS

President Sisi Announces Exit Date From Office

OpenLife News reports that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has announced that he will leave office when his current term expires in 2030, insisting he will not seek to remain beyond that date.

The 71-year-old former army general, who has been president since 2014, said the matter is “completely settled” and that the constitution will not be amended to allow him to stay longer.Sisi made the declaration on Saturday at a graduation ceremony at the Egyptian Military Academy in the New Administrative Capital, one of his flagship megaprojects east of Cairo.

Speaking to graduates and state officials, he said: “The period leading up to 2030 will be the end of my term as president of the state, if I am still alive.

This is completely settled and there will be no discussion about it.”He stressed that the Egyptian constitution “would not be touched.”The constitution, approved in 2014 following the military ouster of late Islamist president Mohamed Morsi in 2013, originally limited presidents to two four-year terms.

However, constitutional amendments approved in a 2019 referendum extended presidential terms from four to six years, with transitional provisions that allowed Sisi to run for an additional term.

Under the amended constitution, Sisi was re-elected in December 2023 for a six-year term that runs until 2030.The announcement comes amid speculations by critics and opposition figures that further constitutional changes could be introduced to allow him to remain in power beyond 2030.

Before running for president, Sisi had denied having political ambitions, but later resigned as defence minister in 2014 to contest and win the presidential election.

Sisi said the period leading to 2030 would be used to groom a new generation of leaders, noting that the Military Academy is currently training hundreds of prospective officials, ministers and presidential candidates in statecraft and leadership.

In his 12 years in office, Sisi has pursued an ambitious state-led development programme anchored on megaprojects, which critics say has been heavily reliant on borrowing and contributed to Egypt’s mounting debt and economic pressures.

His presidency has also faced sustained criticism from international human rights groups over alleged restrictions on political opposition, civil society and freedom of expression — allegations the government rejects, insisting its policies are necessary to preserve stability and national security.