Yusuf Wahba
Yusuf Wahba , also Youssef Wahba Pascha ( Arabic يوسف وهبه; * 1852 in Cairo ; † 1934 ), was an Egyptian politician and lawyer.
Life
He was born into a prominent Coptic family. His father Wahba Bey was the founder of the first Coptic non-profit society, which also included Muslim scholars such as Abdallah Nadim and Sheikh Muhammed Abduh .
Yusuf Wahba translated the Code Napoleon into Arabic while working in the Ministry of Justice between 1875 and 1882 and was instrumental in the modern judicial system of Egypt. In 1894 he became one of the first Egyptian judges at the mixed courts of appeal .
Yusuf Wahba became Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1912 and Minister of Finance in 1914 - an office which he held until May 1920. As finance minister, he introduced the first banknotes in Egypt, supported by the Egyptian Sultanate , with the notes bearing his signature as finance minister. On November 19, 1919, he became Prime Minister of Egypt . Many members of the Coptic community to which he belonged disapproved of his appointment. During his tenure as prime minister, Yusuf Wahba initiated several economic reforms, including the abolition of price controls on agricultural products and the establishment of the first national bank , Banque Misr , by Talaat Harb Pascha.
He joined the first independent Senate, to which he was elected in 1924 for the Alexandria district. During his membership in the Egyptian Senate, he supported various laws that strengthened the independence of the Egyptian judicial system. He opposed the introduction of any privileges for minorities based on ethnicity and religion (including Copts) proposed by the Brunyate Commission for Judicial Reform in 1917 . He left the Senate in 1930.
Yusuf Wahba published two papers on commercial law in Egypt, the first with Shafik Mansour Bey - "Sharh al-Qanun al-Madani" ( An Analysis of the Egyptian Civil Code ) and the second with Abdel Aziz Kahil Bey, a fellow judge from the Joint Court : "Sharh al-Qanun at-Tijari al-Masri" ( An Analysis of The Egyptican Commercial Code ). Youssef Wahba also drafted the statutes of the Majllis Milli , the first Coptic council that governed the affairs of the Coptic community of Egypt outside the Coptic Orthodox Church .
He died in 1934 and was married to Doudou, daughter of Mikhail Bey El Nakkadi. He had eight children. Two of his sons, Mourad Wahba Pascha (1879–1972) and Sadek Wahba Pascha (1885–1971), also had a successful career in the Egyptian judicial system and in the diplomatic service.
literature
- Journal Officiel (Official Gazette), various issues relating to nomination dates (1875, 1882, 1884, 1895, 1912, 1914, 1916, 1919, 1920)
- Saad Zaghlul Pascha (1985) Muzakirat Saad Zaghloul (Political Memoirs of Saad Zaghloul), General Egyptian Book Organization,
- Goldsmith, Arthur (2005) Re-Envisioning Egypt 1919–1952, The American University in Cairo Press
- Public Records Office, British Government Kew Gardens (see reference on Youssef Wahba, Mourad Wahba, Sadek Wahba)
- Daly, Martin (1999) Cambridge History of Egypt: volume 2: Modern Egypt, Cambridge University Press
Individual evidence
- ↑ "Golden Jubilee of the Coptic Charitable Society 1879-1929", (1929) Cairo, Egypt (Arabic)
- ^ Sir William Hayter, (1924) "Recent Constitutional Developments in Egypt", Cambridge University Press , Cambridge
- ↑ Chronology of Egyptian Council of Ministers Vol. I, General Egyptian Book Organization, Cairo, (Arabic)
- ↑ Proceedings of the Egypt Senate (Majlis asch-Schuyuch) 1924, 1929-30, Government Press, Cairo (Arabic)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Wahba, Yusuf |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Egyptian Prime Minister and Judge |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1852 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Cairo , Khedivat Egypt |
| DATE OF DEATH | 1934 |