Egyptian president says, he will not form party

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Tuesday that he has no intention to establish a political party, which has been reassuring to politicians in Egypt, especially at a time months ahead of the parliamentary elections.

Following his two-day meetings with representatives and leaders of various political parties, Sisi said Tuesday that he does not intend to establish a political party "to avoid division or polarisation", stressing that the state would not support any political alliance or party list in the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled to kick off in March, Xinhua reported.

"It is considered a reassuring message to political parties because if the president establishes a party it will easily garner most of the coming parliament's seats," Gamal Salama, head of political science department at Suez University, said.

Salama added that in this case most people will try to join the president's party to guarantee their victory in the parliamentary polls, arguing that the move gives room for non-polarised competition in the upcoming elections.

Throughout Egypt's modern history, military-oriented presidents led ruling political parties, the last of which was the currently-dismantled National Democratic Party (NDP) that was led by late President Anwar Sadat and later by ousted President Hosni Mubarak, giving dim chances for opposition parties to influence political life in the country.

Since January 2011, Egypt witnessed two uprisings that led to the ouster of two heads of state -- long-time ruler Hosni Mubarak and former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi who was removed by then-military chief Sisi in July 2013 after mass protests against his one-year rule.