Cairo – Egyptian Parliament approved the appointment of Hisham Abdul Salam Hasan Badawi as head of the Central Auditing Organization (CAO), Egypt’s main anti-corruption agency, following Hisham Geneina who was sacked and charged of spreading false news about the government’s corruption.

Of the 595 deputies, 329 voted in favor of Badawi. Speaker Ali Abdul Al wished Badawi the best in his new office.

President Sisi issued a decree to remove Geneina from office in March after he stirred controversy over an interview during which he claimed that government corruption had cost 600 billion Egyptian pounds.

A fact-finding commission concluded that Geneina lied about the facts and had misled the public. Many accused Geneina of belonging to the banned Muslim Brotherhood, yet he denied.

According to Central Auditing Authority’s website, the authority “is an independent body as it does not follow any ministry…. The CAO is responsible for the external audit of public sector entities, including about 130 central government departments and administrative units, 120 service agencies, 29 governorates, 50 economic authorities and more than 160 state-owned enterprises, political parties, trade unions, national and party news media, and all units subsidized by the State.”