'Egyptian youth need to be patient'

Press TV talks with Mohamed Ghanem, Muslim Brotherhood representative in the UK, who explains that greater action should be expected once a civilian government is in place and that some things are outside the role of an interim government.

Press TV: Your groups the Muslim Brotherhood has said that it doesn't make much sense to form a second revolution when the first revolution has not fulfilled all its objectives yet. How could these demands be realized? What is the Muslim Brotherhood solution?

Mohamed Ghanem: The Muslim Brotherhood's stance is to accept the right for people to demonstrate. We have to make that clear; this is a healthy sign to say that the revolution is healthy.

You cannot have two revolutions inside each other. You can't have a counter revolution now because the Egyptian people are united unanimously. Having different opinions is very healthy. We have to realize that Egypt is in a transition period; one cannot change society over night.

We know the old regime was very corrupted and was destructing the whole structure of Egypt - economic, political, and social and health. To build up another system and to go in the right direction, this will take time.

On the other side we have the military and the military committee (Supreme Council as a separate institution) having authority. This is a people authority and the army on behalf of the people uses that authority. The people have the right at any time to express their words and doubts - different opinions should be respected. As far as the demonstrators refrain from violence they have the right to express themselves and at the same time respecting the army.

No one can accuse the army now of any bad agenda. The army did a job, which we all appreciate. If we look to what is happening in Libya and Syria and elsewhere we must appreciate fully the role of the army in Egypt.

Press TV: Protesters argue that what is making them stage a second revolution is the hidden intentions to pardon Mubarak and his family, the military's disproportionate use of force, the allegations of torture, the use of live ammunition against protesters, the military trials and the fact that many former officials still hold power in various institutions. Don't these facts show that the ideals of the revolution are seriously threatened and that the only way to resist is to stage a second revolution so to speak?

Mohamed Ghanem: Not at all. I will have to be very careful when I use (talking about) the Egyptian people. The administration does not represent the whole of the Egyptian people, but all the groups behind the revolution will accept the right of people to demonstrate.

Fridays are a political day when we can go and publicly express our opinion. But as I say, when the army protected the revolution we should not forget that. And we have seen around the Middle East today what happens when the army goes against the people. So we have to give it a chance.

We should not be complacent, we should use all the power and respect different opinion and admit the right of people to demonstrate and show their concerns about any issue.
If you can quantify what has happened since the revolution and bringing down the regime of Hosni Mubarak until now, this is a great achievement. We are on the right track. That doesn't mean to be complacent or that all has been achieved; you have to have priorities; to build on the achievements until elections are realized.

The civil representatives will form a constitution; you cannot create a constitution without representation of the people. We have had enough of dictating a constitution to the people. We must first elect a parliament and then the parliament collectively will form a constitution and then the army can go back to its original role of protecting Egypt of external dangers and leave managing affairs to the government. Then life can start to go as fast as the people can push it. There is no instruction book that says page one do this - Egypt right now is like a dream - we have to appreciate the position of the army and get our priorities right step by step without denying the people even if we differ in opinion to show their concern at any time and on Fridays we go to express that right and no one can take that right from the Egyptian people anymore.

Press TV: Regarding the package of aid that is being proposed by Western governments and various Western institutions, people are already referring to the 1975 agreement with Anwar Sadat and the ensuing bread riots that came as a result of the lifting of subsidies, and the conditions that they usually put with these aid packages. And of course there is the policy toward Israel and the shift that could happen regarding Egypt's stance on Israel. Tell us what you think is happening here when we are speaking of counter revolution?

Mohamed Ghanem: Aid is really political aids - it is a virus. They use it to control the political and economic power in the world and they use this as a stake to promote one country against another. Any country in the world is better off without this aid.

Aid is something to do with the international monetary and financial structure. We have lived through the crunch of 2008, which came as a result of the production of monetary policies, but now after these revolutions we have to examine it and choose another system. The principle of the international system that is built on money creation, which created the aid, is in the favor of the developed country - people think it is in favor of the undeveloped nation, which is not true. It is used for political domination over the undeveloped countries.