Al-Sisi reviews Egypt's food security, strategic commodity reserves    Egypt signs strategic agreements to attract global investment in gold, mineral exploration    Syria says it will defend its territory after Israeli strikes in Suwayda    Egyptian Exchange ends mixed on July 15    Suez Canal vehicle carrier traffic set to rebound by 20% in H2: SCA chief    Tut Group launches its operations in Egyptian market for exporting Egyptian products    China's urban jobless rate eases in June '25    Egypt's Health Minister reviews drug authority cooperation with WHO    Egypt urges EU support for Gaza ceasefire, reconstruction at Brussels talks    Pakistan names Qatari royal as brand ambassador after 'Killer Mountain' climb    Health Ministry denies claims of meningitis-related deaths among siblings    Egypt, Mexico explore joint action on environment, sustainability    Egypt, Mexico discuss environmental cooperation, combating desertification    Needle-spiking attacks in France prompt government warning, public fear    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt, France FMs review Gaza ceasefire efforts, reconstruction    CIB finances Giza Pyramids Sound and Light Show redevelopment with EGP 963m loan    Greco-Roman tombs with hieroglyphic inscriptions discovered in Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Egypt condemns deadly terrorist attack in Niger        Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt's GAH, Spain's Konecta discuss digital health partnership    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Cabinet approves establishment of national medical tourism council to boost healthcare sector    Egypt's PM follows up on Julius Nyerere dam project in Tanzania    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Opinion: father, unlike son
Published in The Egyptian Gazette on 14 - 05 - 2012

CAIRO - Young Egyptians, angry with their fathers, are planning a dilatory tactic. In the run-up to next week's presidential elections, the first since Hosni Mubarak's overthrow, the Internet has gone viral with a call for young people to stop their fathers from voting for the feloul, the Mubarak-era officials, who are standing for president.
‘Hide your father's ID if he plans to vote for the feloul' is the title of a widely popular message on the social networking website Facebook.
The targets are two Mubarak-era contenders: Ahmed Shafiq and Amr Moussa. The former was Mubarak's last premier, seen by the young revolutionaries as an extension of the Mubarak regime. Shafiq, an ex-army general, has been allowed back into the dramatic race after a brief exclusion.
A controversial ban, rammed through the Islamist-dominated Parliament, on senior officials in the Mubarak regime and the now-disbanded ruling party, has failed to derail Shafiq's presidential bid.
Shafiq, 71, portrays himself as a would-be president capable of re-establishing security in the country "within 24 hours" of his winning the presidential post.
“This claim does not shake a single hair in my body,” a confident Shafiq said during a recent TV appearance, when asked to comment on his detractors' calling him a feloul.
Moussa, a frontrunner in the presidential marathon, served for ten years as foreign minister under Mubarak, before becoming the chief of the Arab League for another decade.
Moussa, 75, is at pains to project himself as an opponent of Mubarak, a claim dismissed by young critics, who brand him as a ‘transformer' ��" allegedly for shifting his alliance from Mubarak to the revolution.
The career diplomat, who boasts about his background as a veteran statesman, appeals to secular-minded voters, who are worried about the Islamists' growing clout.
As Election Day grows ever nearer, the young revolutionaries are intensifying their online campaign to stop the Mubarak holdovers from ‘reproducing' the ousted regime.
“Have we removed Mubarak only to install Shafiq or Moussa?” wrote one detractor on a Facebook account. “It would be a disastrous insult to the blood of the martyrs if either of these two became president,” he added, referring to more than 800 Egyptians killed during the anti-Mubarak revolt.
“Our fathers have failed to catch the spirit of the revolution. They are obsessed with stability, no matter what the price,” he wrote.
Egypt has been hit by street turmoil and a surge in crime in the past 15 months, with Mubarak loyalists suspected of being behind the unrest.
“Enough of this instability,” said Ahmed Hatem, a construction worker. “I have been out of work for most of the past 15 months. It is high time things settled down and life returned to normal in this country,” added Hatem, a father of four.
He said he had not heard about the campaign to prevent older voters from casting their ballots for the Mubarak-era presidential hopefuls.
“If someone steals my ID ��" even my son ��" it is illegal and undemocratic,” he stressed.
“As a precaution, I'll hide my ID in a secret place, that even a professional thief won't be able to find,” added Hatem with a smile, declining to say for whom he will vote.


Clic here to read the story from its source.