ElBaradei calls on Morsi to resign ahead of opposition protests

Senior Egyptian opposition figure, Mohamed ElBaradei, has urged President Mohamed Morsi to resign ahead of mass anti-government protests scheduled to be held on June 30.

“For Egypt’s sake, I call on President Mohamed Morsi to resign and give us the opportunity to begin a new phase based on the principles of the revolution, which are freedom and social justice,” he said on Saturday.

ElBaradei added, “I would like to call on President Mohamed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood to respond to the cries from all over Egypt.”

ElBaradei further noted that June 30 protests are intended to “correct the path” of the popular uprising that toppled former dictator Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

The former UN nuclear agency chief also said it was time for “national reconciliation” to move forward.

“What is needed is a system based on free and fair elections with international and local monitoring (and) parliamentary elections to have all segments of society represented,” ElBaradei noted, adding, “We want the Egypt that the revolution rose up for.”

On Saturday, Morsi repeated his call for dialogue with the Egyptian opposition groups to forge a roadmap and eliminate the existing disagreements.

“I invite everyone for a balanced dialogue without preconditions to discuss what would achieve the interests of our nation, and to meet the aspirations of our people,” he said in an interview published in the state-owned Akhbar al-Youm newspaper.

Morsi also noted, “The dialogue shouldn’t start with crippling conditions, and it should come up with recommendations, not orders.”

“The call for protests on June 30 reflects an atmosphere of freedom granted to us by 2011 revolution.”

The Egyptian president also stated that Cairo government will however take all the necessary legal measures to face violence and vandalism.

“If the Egyptians choose someone else in the coming presidential elections, I will hand him the power in accordance with the constitution and the law,” Morsi said.

Egyptian activists and opposition leaders have gathered millions of petitions, calling for Morsi’s ouster.

They also seek to press him for an early presidential election through the June 30 demonstrations.