CAIRO: El-Ghad Party president Ehab El-Khouly stepped down Tuesday following the collective resignation of 21 members who said the party was run haphazardly and "according to personal whims. El-Khouly said he will not be running for the presidential post again, citing the letter he sent to the party's Wisdom Committee, in which he called for a meeting of the general assembly. El-Khouly, who was elected last November to head the party, told Daily News Egypt that his resignation came as an answer to accusations that he is monopolizing decision making within the party. "I have played my part throughout the last year and now I want to give someone else the opportunity to lead as I've grown tired of all the conflicts, said Khouly. Last year he said he would only occupy the post for one year and not four as stated in the party charter. Abdel Moniem El-Tonsy, head of the Wisdom Committee, told Daily News Egypt that the committee will meet next week to set a date for the general assembly meeting and a date for the party's presidential elections. Meanwhile the 21 members who resigned signed their names on a statement calling for an immediate intervention to save the party from the pending collapse, which they said would be a result of "haphazard management and personal whims. The members cited several reasons for their resignation, including the elimination of party founder Ayman Nour's name from the certificates the party presented to the youth arrested following the April 6 strike. The group also sent a letter to the Youth Coalition of Political Parties in order to postpone the press conference that would have announced the forming of a coalition between the members of the Ghad, Tagammu, Wafd, Nassiry and Democratic Front parties. Local authorities consider the Ayman Nour party supporters as an illegal group, in accordance with a court ruling which only recognizes former party vice president Moussa Mostafa as the official president of El-Ghad.
