Morsi reshuffle draws scorn

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CAIRO, May 7 (UPI) -- An opposition spokesman from the Egyptian government said Tuesday a Cabinet reshuffle from President Mohamed Morsi wasn't what rivals had in mind.

Nine new ministers took the oath of office Tuesday. Morsi's administration has faced criticism from rivals who say the economy is faltering because of two years of political crisis that followed the Egyptian revolution.

Morsi was voted in last year as the first democratically elected president in Egyptian history. He was the candidate from the Freedom and Justice Party, the Muslim Brotherhood's political arm.

Several of the new ministers are connected to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Morsi promised to reshape his government to allay concerns but Shehab Wagih, a spokesman for the liberal Free Egyptians Party, said the reshuffle gave the Islamists even more political say in the government.

"This was not the reshuffle Egyptians had called for," he told Egyptian news agency al-Ahram.

New officials were sworn in for positions ranging from the petroleum to finance ministers. Interior, foreign affairs and defense remain unchanged.