Egyptian PM to appoint deputy from 'wise men'
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Egyptian Vice President Omar Suleimnan asked Prime Minister Ahmad Shafik to appoint a deputy prime minister from the "Wise Men Committee", state TV reported on Friday.
A group of prominent Egyptian independent figures formed this committee earlier this month, calling itself "Wise Men Committee," and joined the national dialogue with Suleiman and opposition parties, trying to promote a solution to the country's crisis.
The group of wise men suggested in the dialogue that President Hosni Mubarak hand over power to Suleiman as a compromise between protesters' demands for Mubarak to leave office immediately and his stated decision to stay on until the end of his term in September.
The committee includes prominent figures like Amr Moussa, secretary general of the Arab league, Ahmad Zwail, laureate of Nobel Prize in physics and the famous businessman Naguib Saweris among others.
President Mubarak said in a televised speech on Thursday night that he will hand over power to Vice President Omar Suleiman, but will not resign, in a response to more than two weeks of mass protests against his 30-year rule.
Also on Friday, Saminr Radwan, the Minister of Finance denied any fears for a military coup as announced in media and asserted that he worked without the interference of the army, through telephone interview to Al Arabiya TV.
Radwan said that Egypt witnessed many financial losses since Jan. 25. The Egyptian stock markets lost about 72 billion U.S. dollars in one week, said Radwan, adding more than one million tourists had left, which affected the country's economy very much.
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