CAIRO, Nov 29 (Aswat Masriya) – Egypt’s Interior Ministry warned citizens against taking part in foreign polls that measure public opinion on economic, social and security issues in Egypt, in a statement issued Tuesday.

According to the ministry, there have been mounting complaints from citizens who receive phone calls from companies “who ask for their opinion on several economic, political and security issues under the pretext of conducting a poll to shed light on citizens’ problems.”

The ministry called on Egyptians to be alert to “such devious methods of gathering information on the situation inside Egypt which harm national security.”

“The ministry trusts that citizens are aware of the challenges that face the nation and aim at destabilizing it,” the statement read.

Polls in Egypt are mainly conducted by the Egyptian Center for Public Opinion Research (Baseera) and the Public Opinion Poll Center (POPC), affiliated with the Cabinet’s Information and Decision Support Center (IDSC).