That the vote is staggered over three days through to Monday is partially designed to maximise turnout. Businessmen loyal to the government offer goods and money to registered voters to encourage them to come out and vote. Their representatives, mostly young men in their 20 and 30s, could be seen organizing the distribution on Saturday outside several polling centres at poor areas in central Cairo. \"I will vote but this is a bribe that I will not accept,\" said Mohammed, a 62-year-old Cairene who was let go from his construction company when it was privatized in 2003. Mohammed, who drives a taxi to supplement his monthly $90 pension, said he planned to vote in support of the amendments. \"I just hope that they will increase my pension as they promised,\" he said as he made his way to the southern Cairo district where he intended to vote. Some of the amendments included in the changes that Egyptians will vote on are likely to help secure a \"yes\" vote, such as allocating 25 per cent of parliament's seats to women that will appeal to female and some progressive voters. Mr El Sisi has in his five years in office gone to great length to empower women and defend them against discrimination or harassment. He has tirelessly thanked them in public for enduring the steep price rises that resulted from his economic reforms. He has a record six women in the current cabinet. Ensuring \"suitable\" representation in parliament for minorities, Egyptian expatriates and people with special needs is another amendment that would likely deliver more tallies for the \"yes\" column. Mr El Sisi has endeared himself to Christians, the country's largest minority with about 10 per cent of Egypt's 100 million people. He has eased restrictions on the building of new churches or the renovation of existing ones and also insisted that new cities under construction have a sufficient number of Christian places of worship. Many in the Christian community revere Mr El Sisi for the 2013 removal of a divisive Islamist president they feared would disenfranchise them. While he has the backing of many Christians, some vocal members of the community believe he has not done enough to protect them against the transgressions of radical Muslims in rural areas, including attacks on churches. The most contentious amendment is the extension of presidential terms from four to six years. The two-term cap on a serving president in the 2014 charter has been kept, but a new clause tailor-made for Mr El Sisi extends his current second term from four to six years – giving him two extra years before a vote when his extended term runs out in 2024. He will also then be allowed to run for a third, six-year term. Mr El Sisi was elected in a landslide in 2014. Last year, he won a new, four-year term after he ran virtually unchallenged when his serious challengers dropped out citing intimidation and one of the highest profile rivals, former military chief of staff Sami Anan, was arrested for breaking military code by not getting approval for his run. In the end, Mr El Sisi ran against a little-known politician known to be among his supporters. Opponents to the changes criticise the terms and also parliament’s handling of the bill. \"It's illegitimate. It's ... an act of contempt for the constitution,\" Nour Farahat, one of Egypt's most prominent legal experts, wrote on Facebook. Abdullah El Sinnawy, a prominent columnist and a one-time supporter of Mr El Sisi, wrote in Cairo's independent Al Shorouk newspaper on Wednesday that parts of parliament's handling of the amendments amounted to \"complete contempt\" for the rules and principles of today's world. He also criticised the tailor-made clause allowing the president to stay in office beyond his two terms, arguing that \"personalized\" clauses are not acceptable in constitutions. \"What safeguards stability in this country is for its living political forces to emphasize, as much as they could, respect for modern constitutional rules, not try to circumvent them,\" he wrote. Mr Abdel-Aal, among the most vocal supporters of the president, has said that focusing the conversation on the presidential terms was unfair and biased. Proponents like Mr Abdel-Aal dismiss criticism of the changes, arguing that Mr El Sisi has no lust for power and that his major contributions to security, the economy and infrastructure warrant a longer stay in office to complete his ambitious plans. In keeping with procedural protocol, the president has remained publicly silent on the changes, conducting business as usual throughout the process that began in early February, including a tour of West Africa and a White House meeting with President Donald Trump.On Saturday, he discussed bolstering the country’s petrochemical industries with his prime minister and his oil minister, according to a presidential statement.","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The National","url":"https://www.thenationalnews.com","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://www.thenationalnews.com/pf/resources/images/logo_rectangle.png?d=279"}},"keywords":["National Election Authority","Sami Anan","World","West Africa","senate","Abdel-Fattah El Sisi","printing ballot papers","procedural protocol","White House","Hosni Mubarak","social media networks","pro-government media","his serious challengers dropped out","Nour Farahat","Egypt","Donald Trump","Cairo","parliamentary vote","Abdullah El Sinnawy","Middle East and North Africa","transportation","Ali Abdel-Aal","Article"],"description":"Expats voted last week and the poll in the country will be held over three days until Monday","thumbnailUrl":"https://thenational-the-national-prod.cdn.arcpublishing.com/resizer/7gldDWku7ypAid6lMWBTzxe7Z8k=/400x267/filters:format(jpg):quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/thenational/BKRCBVS47KIVTVJORFDD626M4Y.jpg","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/mena/egypt-heads-to-the-polls-for-referendum-to-extend-abdel-fattah-el-sisi-s-rule-1.851346"}}