In a speech following his victory in the elections, Egyptian President-Elect Muhammad Mursi expressed gratitude to the military, the police force, and "all sectors of the Egyptian people." He promised that, as "president for all Egyptians, wherever they may be, home and abroad," he would build a "national, constitutional, democratic, and modern state" in Egypt.
Following are excerpts from the speech, which aired on Al-Tahrir TV on June 24, 2012.
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/3475.htm.
"The great people of Egypt – you who rejoice today and celebrate the festival of democracy in Egypt, you who stand in city squares, in Tahrir Square and in all the squares of Egypt... Dearly beloved, my people, my clan, my brothers, my sons – you who have your eyes set on the future, and who wish that Egypt, our homeland, will enjoy blessing and prosperity, development and stability, safety and security...
"Dearly beloved, I approach you all with the praise of Allah. We all praise Allah for reaching this historic moment, a moment that constitutes a luminous point in time, delineated by the hand of the Egyptians, by their determination, their blood, their tears, and their sacrifices. We are all delineating this moment with these sacrifices.
"I would not be standing before you today, as the first president to be elected by the free will of the Egyptians, in the first presidential elections after the January 25 Revolution… I would not be standing here with you today, as overwhelming joy engulfs all parts of our beloved Egyptian homeland, if not for the success granted by Allah, followed by these sacrifices, and by the pure blood of our martyrs and the glorious wounded among us...
"I salute the great people of Egypt, and the army of Egypt, the best soldiers on Earth, the armed forces and all their members, wherever they may be. I salute them sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, and I send them the love reserved in my heart for Allah.
"Indeed, I love them, I value their role, and I am committed to strengthening them, and to protecting them and the deep-rooted [military] institution that we all love and cherish.
"To my brothers and sons, the honorable men of the police force, some of whom think mistakenly that I value them less than I value others, I say that this is not true. Anyone who commits a crime should be punished for it by law. The honorable men of the police force, who constitute the vast majority of my sons and brothers in the Egyptian police, rightly deserve my salutations, because a great role awaits them in preserving the domestic security and peace of this country.
"I also salute all the judges of Egypt, who supervised the elections of Egypt of the revolution. Even those who did not supervise [the elections] – all the judges of Egypt enjoy our appreciation, our respect, and our love. They constitute the third branch of authority, which must continue to be – as it was before – proud, independent, free-willed, and separate from the executive authority.
"It will be my responsibility in the future to ensure that the judges really are independent from the executive branch, and necessarily, from the legislative branch.
"I say to all sectors of the Egyptian people, to my people and my clan, that on this glorious day and by your own choice and your own free will – second only to the grace of Allah – I become president for all Egyptians, wherever they may be, home and abroad...
"With your help, I intend to build a new Egypt – a national, constitutional, democratic, and modern state. I shall devote all my time to this great enterprise, in accordance with our identity and our sources of authority. With you, I shall endeavor to preserve Egypt's national security in its Arab, African, regional, and international aspects.
"We shall adhere to the international agreements and covenants. We have brought the world a message of peace. We shall adhere to the international agreements and covenants, as well as to the Egyptian commitments and accords with the whole world..."
