Cairo, Nov 27 (IANS): Head of Egypt's ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Hussein Tantawi Saturday met two potential presidential candidates and discussed with them the current situation in the country.

Tantawi held separate meetings with Mohamed ElBaradei, former IAEA chief, and Amr Moussa, former Arab League (AL) secretary general, who were both potential presidential candidates in the presidential polls next year, reported Xinhua, citing the state TV.

Meanwhile, newly appointed Prime Minister Kamal al-Ganzouri, who replaced Essam Sharaf after his cabinet's resignation was accepted by SCAF Tuesday, Saturday met a number of youths representing several coalitions, in a bid to learn about their views on the new government formation, which is reportedly to be announced within days.

The official MENA news agency quoted a political activist as saying that al-Ganzouri said Saturday that he expected the new cabinet would be sworn in within 3 days.

However, al-Ganzouri has told reporters on Friday that the "new government will not be formed before the parliamentary elections, but it will not take long."

The parliamentary elections slated for Monday will begin on schedule in nine governorates, said Abdel-Moez Ibrahim, chairman of the High Judicial Elections Commission.

The elections will be held under full judicial supervision, Ibrahim said.

The voting has been extended from one to two days in both the first and run-off rounds in each of the three stages.

The fresh round of protests in major Egyptian cities, which started on Nov 18, continued on Saturday, as some youth groups called for another million-man march on Sunday after a mass protest on Friday which saw tens of thousands of people on the street.