Evening star., 1952-08-13
Cairo MosIeIn Chief
Warns He'Il0ppose
Western Defense Tie
By the Associated Press

hood warned today that his
powerful political organization
would oppose any defense talks
with the West while Britain re-
tains her hold on the neighboring
Sudan and the Suez Canal Lone.
The brotherhood's supreme
guide" Hassan Ell Hodeiby, an.
nounced this stand in an interview
shortly after the Egyptian cabinet
set up seven committees armed
with sweeping powers to clean UP
public corruption dating as far
as 1899.
The latest government action
was viewed by informed sources as
the results of pressure for a swift
breakdown from Egypt's military
power, Maj. Gen. Mohammed
Naguib, and the army. Premier
Ally Manner had suggested the ma
tion's political parties be given
time to purge their sown ranks,
but so far the powerful Wafd
Party-expected to be a chief tar
|get of the graft cleanup-has
kicked out only six minor mem
bers.
Tax Rates Increased.
The government also issued a
decree setting progressive income
tax rates that reach as high as
80 per cent on incomes of $4,000
Egyptian pounds ($144, ,00O). The
new rates become effective next
January on incomes earned dur
ing 1852.
Hodeiby indicated that the
brotherhood. which claims millions
OF supporters and repeatedly has
Ia strong following among leaders
Iof the army coup d'etat that
ousted King Farouk, give social
reforms and the political cleanup
top priority among the nations
problems.
The Moslem leader insisted his
brotherhood is ready to cooperate
with foreigners and non-Moslems
particularly in the economic and
financial fields.
But he declared that even if
Britain does withdraw from the
canal zone and the Sudan, Egypt
must be given a free choice on
whether she wants to join the
West or prefers to take a stand of
complete neutrality"
Can Go Back 13 Years.
Establishment of the new purge
committees was the reform gov
ernment's most drastic move to
date in its war on the wide
spread corruption which has been
charged to government and court
figures for years. A previous
measure by the new government
limited prosecution and punish
ment to future wrongdoers.
The new investigating bodies
were empowered to uncover cases
of graft and corruption that oc-
CURED any time in the past 13
years-almost all the time Farouk
actually ruled.
4 The committees were given
extraordinary powers to aid their
investigators, including rights to:
Hold any person accused o1
Igrafting under precautionary ar
rest until his trial; enforce such
administrative penalties as dis
missal from Office, compulsory
retirement or demotion and COM
NIT for trial in regular courts any
person they deem guilty of abuse
of public Office in the last 13
years.
/ Arms Scandal to Be Probed.
One Of the principal cases
marked for investigation is the
defective arms scandal of the 194s
Arab-JeWish war in Palestine
Farouk has been charged with
blocking precious probes into this
sale of faulty arms to the Egyptian
Army, from which high officials
repeatedly prof1ted hugely.
Top ranking Wafdists were not
mentioned specifically in the COM
mittees' assignments but they are
expected to be charged with the
bulk of the corruption. The Wafd
was in power from the 1949 elec-
ton until ousted by Farouk fol-
lowing the Cairo fire riots last
January.
Important Wafdists and the
party press have demanded openly
that action be taken against the
party's secretary general, former
Interior Minister Fouad Serag El
Din.
The nations new income tax
rates were announced in cabinet
decree. Incomes of less than 1,O0O
Egyptian pounds ($2,880) will be
exempt. The tax will begin at
8 per cent on incomes between
IL nm and I 500 nolIrdS (S4 320).