It’s been nine months already since Field Marshal Abdel Fattah El Sisi took hold of the helm, pushed Morsi aside, and announced the Road Map. Since then, Egyptians have been waiting earnestly for him to continue what he initiated and “straighten the leaning,” as the Egyptian saying goes. Patiently they anticipated the announcement: Sisi will run in the upcoming Egyptian presidential race, but to no avail. No, no final decision with regard to his running has been made.
Every day an episode of some sort assures Egyptians that Sisi will run. This is it, they say, but, no, the Field Marshal is not swayed. When the military endorsed Sisi’s candidacy, Egyptian hailed the decision as a confirmation; now he’ll run was the general mood. When Sisi was bestowed the rank of Field Marshal, Egyptians assumed it was a thank-you gesture prior to his stepping down. When El Beblawi’s cabinet resigned, Egyptians and western media considered it a smooth transition into having Sisi leave his current post as Defence Minister. But most importantly, when Egyptians approved the referendum with a 98% yes vote, they believed it the green light Sisi was waiting for.
But nothing seems to get Sisi to make up his mind. Quite the contrary, a presidential decree announced recently stipulates that the Minister of Defence, not the president, is the head of the Military Council (SCAF) for the first time in Egypt's history. The timing of the decree and its ulterior motives are not obvious to Egyptians. Is it a way to give Sisi more authority if he remains as Minister of Defence? Or is it to reassure suspicious Egyptians that the incoming president will not be part of SCAF? Then Engineer Ibrahim Mehleb forms the new cabinet but leaves the post of Defence Minister for Interim President Adly Mansour to fill causing more confusion than not. And here is the new cabinet including Field Marshal Sisi as Defence Minister.
While other potential candidates decide to run or not to run, Sisi leaves Egyptians hanging. As stories about which camp Lieutenant General Anaan is running for, or whether Sabahi is able to mirror Nasser, or why Shafik is opting out of the race, Sisi remains silent. He neither confirms nor denies the rampant call for his nomination. Bemused, he watches not committing.
Field Marshal Sisi did once say that he had better not become president or else most Egyptians will be expected to work overly hard. He also told Ahmed Al Garallah, of the Kuwaiti Newspaper, El Seyaassah, that he’ll run. According to El Garallah, Sisi said, “Yes, the matter has been decided, and I have no choice but to respond to the call of the Egyptian people… The call [of the people] has been heard everywhere, and I will not reject it. I will seek a renewal of confidence of the people through free voting." This interview created a buzz worldwide, but the exact wording and Sisi’s definite decision were denied by the army spokesperson.
Though most officials have advocated his nomination, it is the masses that have been the driving force of this unofficial campaign. Egyptians from all walks of life have asked Sisi to run—the elitists, the academics, and the ordinary Egyptians. Campaigns such as “Kammil Gemilak,” or “Complete your Good Deed,” or “El-Sisi for Presidency” merely reciprocate the sentiments of Egyptians at large.
And yet the aim behind the delay in the announcement still remains unknown. Is he contemplating taking the leading position in the country or is he not? Is it a done deal? Is he merely following due process? The official call for nomination to the presidency has not begun yet, so why is everyone so up in arms about something yet to be announced? Is he strategizing and gaining momentum from the postponement? Or is he being coy and shrewd? And is it getting to be a bit too much?
In all fairness to Egypt and Egyptians, soap opera tactics, the “to-be-continued next episode” strategy is not very favourable at this point. The country needs closure. It needs to see where it is heading.
I suggest Field Marshal Sisi decide and give Egyptians a break. If he is not planning on running, then it’s time he tells Egyptians so; if he is indeed going to run, then again, it’s high time he does that.
Field Marshal Sis, get on with it.
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