Egypt’s Shafiq promises to choke protests if elected

  Shafiq, the last prime minister of the ousted ruler Hosni Mubarak, said he would only allow rallies authorized by his own government. “How can some 200,000 demonstrators or so topple someone who has been elected by millions?” he said. He also said he would order cutting electricity from Tahrir Square should demonstrations be held there to oppose his victory. The comments of Shafiq, who is accused of having links to remnants of Mubarak's regime, came after a number of Egyptian lawmakers and representatives of political forces threatened to oust him by mass demonstrations if he becomes president. In a related development, presidential candidate Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh's campaign has accused Shafiq backers of assaulting his supporters and tearing down campaign banners. A member of Shafiq's campaign has denied the allegations and accused Aboul Fotouh’s supporters of tearing down Shafiq banners. Shafiq, a former military personality, seen as the undeclared favorite for the ruling military council in the presidential poll, has survived an earlier disqualification. Just a year after he was forced to resign as Egypt's prime minister, he hopes to return to political life as the new president. The Egyptian presidential election is to be held on May 23 and 24, with a run-off on June 16 and 17, if necessary. It will be the country's first presidential race since the toppling of long-term US-backed regime of Hosni Mubarak in a popular revolution early 2011.