The Muslim Brotherhood announced a vision of the new Constitution where the military plays no political role, and has no power to control Parliament, and where no civilians are subjected to military trials. Dr. Mahmoud Ghozlan, member of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Guidance Bureau and member of the Constituent Assembly (CA) tasked with drawing up a new Constitution, affirmed that the Brotherhood refuses any political role for the military institution in the upcoming Constitution. “The military institution belongs to the people, entrusted with protecting the homeland and its borders. There is no reason why some of its affairs should not be confidential, bearing in mind security issues inherent in this establishment’s affairs.”
Ghozlan did not object to suggestions within the Committee for Defence and National Security – an offshoot of the CA’s System of Governance Committee – that the military’s status would be closer to the 1971 Constitution, so it would declare details of Armed Forces budget and laws to the National Defence Council, which includes civilian and military personnel, before submission to Parliament. Meanwhile, Dr. Ghozlan denied that the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) will have any authority over Parliament in the country’s new national charter.