Ex-presidential candidate Ahmed Shafiq has said that many – whom he did not name – notified him that he was the winner of Egypt’s presidency, adding that he was startled when he knew that the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Mursi had won.

The new administration headed by president Mursi will have to exert a lot of effort if it wants to attain a civil state, Shafiq said in an interview with Sky News Arabia in Abu Dhabi.

“I believe it is not right to mix religion with politics. But will the new system apply this policy even partially? We will see,” Shafiq stated in his first interview since election results were announced.

“Mursi has to balance between his current position as president and his affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood,” Shafiq, Mubarak’s last prime minister, added.

Shafiq described Mursi’s speech in Tahrir square on Friday as “passionate and enthusiastic” yet he said, “We should not evaluate a president based on his first speech. It’s a matter of accumulation. We have to follow his actions before we evaluate him.”