CAIRO
Egypt's new interim prime minister Ibrahim Mehleb is known for taking a hands-on approach to every task or position he has assumed.
"I'm a handyman; I like getting my hands dirty," is a phrase Mehleb, 65, is known by those around him for saying.
On Tuesday, interim President Adly Mansour tasked Mehleb, the outgoing housing minister, with naming a new cabinet following the resignation of interim prime minister Hazem al-Beblawi one day earlier.
Though he has kept a low political profile and focused largely on business projects, Mehleb had sat on the notorious Policies Committee, the inner circle of ousted president Hosni Mubarak's now-dissolved National Democratic Party.
He was also one of the MPs appointed by Mubarak to Egypt's Shura Council (upper house of parliament) in late 2010, where he remained until the January 2011 uprising that ultimately led to Mubarak's departure and the dissolution of parliament.
Mehleb, a 1972 graduate of Cairo University's engineering faculty, made his way up the ladder of Cairo-based construction giant Arab Contractors, eventually becoming board chairman in 2001.
He has also held leading positions at the American Chamber of Commerce, the Suez Canal Bank and Egyptian metal casting company the Al-Nasr Corporation.
Observers cite Mehleb's experience as a member of the Arab Water Council's council of governors as a reason for his appointment to the premiership, in light of an ongoing dispute between Cairo and Addis Ababa over the latter's construction of a mega-dam on the Nile's upper reaches.
'Great dangers'
On Monday evening, al-Beblawi abruptly announced that his cabinet had tendered its resignation to Egypt's interim presidency. In a brief address, al-Beblawi cited "great dangers" faced by Egypt.
Egypt's already-ailing economy has deteriorated further amid the ongoing unrest that has come in the wake of last July's ouster of president Mohamed Morsi by the military after only one year in office.
In the run up to the Beblawi government's collective resignation, the country was hit with a fresh wave of labor strikes in a number of vital sectors, including healthcare and public transport.
Monday's cabinet resignation comes ahead of anticipated presidential polls, dates for which have yet to be set.
Presidential elections will represent the second phase (following last month's constitutional referendum) of an army-imposed transitional roadmap unveiled in the wake of Morsi's ouster.
englishnews@aa.com.tr
