The Support Egypt coalition is a political bloc known for its total and unwavering support for President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, as well as unflinching defense of his policies. It entered the last parliamentary elections and won a landslide victory, capturing all 120 seats allotted to party lists. The coalition now holds 315 out of parliament’s 596 seats.

At the same time, numerous charges have been leveled against the coalition. Foremost among these is the charge that it is attempting to seize control of parliament and pass any law desired by the government, and that its internal organs of administration are codifying a dictatorship. Saad al-Gamal, the head of the coalition and chairman of the Arab Affairs Committee in parliament, categorically denied these charges in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, his first since becoming head of the coalition on May 9.

In his remarks to Al-Monitor, Gamal expressed his view that all the charges being leveled at the coalition are completely baseless, and that their goal is to influence him and undermine the popular support that brought him to this station. He also said that the coalition has presented a number of proposed laws to parliament, and that these will be discussed in parliament’s second session — after, that is, it tackles the laws governing church construction, the National Election Coalition and the current administration. All the coalition’s proposed laws, he stressed, are in Egypt’s national interest and the interest of her citizens.

Gamal did not dismiss the possibility that terrorist elements were involved in the downing of the lost Egyptian airliner, but stressed the importance of waiting for the results of the French investigation and not rushing to judgment. In this way, he said, we will be able to learn the facts regarding this painful episode, track down the perpetrators and hold them to account, whomever they are.