Op-ed Review: Sisi’s ‘hidden messages’ during Zohr ceremony

CAIRO - 3 February 2018: Remarks given by President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi are still dominating opinion columns and articles written by prominent media figures in Egypt on Saturday. Sisi’s remarks were made during the inauguration ceremony of the Zohr natural gas field in Post Said governorate on Wednesday.

In state-run Al-Ahram newspaper, Makram Mohamed Ahmed praised Zohr field’s inauguration, calling it “one of the Egyptians’ wonders.” He believed that the Zohr field shall improve the difficult Egyptian circumstances.

Makram stated that Zohr will contribute to changing the Egyptian state’s course amid changing circumstances. “Egyptians have an opportunity to prove to the entire world that they are capable of doing the impossible in a short time.”

The partisan Al-Wafd newspaper tackled in its opinion columns the political atmosphere in Egypt and foreign conspiracies that have been targeting the Egyptian national security. Wagdy Zein Eddin illustrated the key messages, in his point of view, that Sisi have directed to the media outlets during Zohr field’s ceremony.

The Egyptian press have to adhere to objectivity and neutral coverage criteria so that the press can play an essential role in boosting security and order in the state of Egypt, according to Zein Eddin. “Sisi’s message to the media can be interpreted as a directive to stick to complete objectivity in order to survive plots against Egypt amid terrifying and horrible conspiracies against Egyptian national security.”

Egyptian columnist Abbas el-Tarabili wrote in Wafd newspaper about the disputes circulated among members of the Wafd Party recently after the withdrawal of the party from proposing el-Sayyid el-Badawi for the presidential election.

“Nine months later, Al-Wafd will celebrate a one-century anniversary as it was founded in 1918 as the first concrete outcome from the 1919 revolution,” el-Tarabili added.
In privately-owned Shorouk newspaper, Emad Eddin Hussein tackled the “hidden messages” in Sisi’s statements during the Zohr ceremony and during the “Tale of Nation” conference two weeks ago.

“When Sisi said that he will not allow a corrupt person to become president, he proved that there are definite facts offered to security apparatuses about some moves on ground that Sisi does not want to reveal to Egyptians,” Hussein stressed.

Sisi’s messages warned many parties that any attempt to destabilize the Egyptian security will never be forgiven.

In Hussein’s opinion, Sisi sought to send warning messages to two parties, former military chief of staff Sami Anan and his supporters and the political forces which have called for boycotting the upcoming presidential election which is scheduled to be on March 26 to 28.

“Governmental circles believe the boycott calls are attempts to coup against the constitution,” Hussein added. “Urgent political solutions are needed.”

In Al-Watan newspaper, Emad Eddin Adeeb expressed his anger at the media and press performance in Egypt, accusing them of making up news stories and lacking credibility. “We witness an era of journalism without journalists, news without sources and statements that have never been given,” Adeeb manifested.

Adeeb warned writers who are used to fabricating news stories that they will face legal charges someday. “You [the writers that he talked about above] will never escape Allah’s punishment for the crimes that you have committed against humanity and media.”

In independent Al-Masry Al-Youm newspaper, Mohamed el-Amin wondered if the so-called ‘Dawn Visitors’ phenomenon has re-appeared again or not. The ‘Dawn Visitors’ refers to the national security services officers who used to ‘visit’ and ‘arrest’ defendants in political cases at dawn.

One of the opposition groups that called for boycotting the presidential election claimed that he had received a threat via a phone call from an unknown number. Amin wondered if this allegation was true or not, adding, “Are there truly calls threatening politicians? Or do these allegations aim to drive a wedge between the Egyptian regime and politicians.”
Amin ruled out the possibility of the appearance of the so-called ‘Dawn Visitors’ again in the public field after two popular revolutions against such oppressive actions. He manifested that such phenomenon will harm the Egyptian image and reputation globally.