The outcome of the first and second rounds of parliamentary elections points to a profound crisis in Egypt. Liberal parties have practically vanished as the legally banned Muslim Brotherhood (MB) emerged as the country's main opposition. The National Democratic Party (NDP), as usual, will secure a majority in the parliament, either through its own members or independents who are eager to return to the fold. But do we, as a nation, want the MB to have such weight in society and politics? Do we assent to the demise of liberal opposition; to a political life in which the NDP alone faces those who claim that "Islam is the solution"? Does the MB, with its known platform though less well known objectives, deserve to be the country's main opposition? The MB is gaining more seats in parliament, as well as more attention and international backing. Many are impressed by the slogans; the litany of piety and bits of charity that the MB metes out. The MB has little more to offer, but that does not seem to stop it. The MB is popular because the opposition is fielding weak candidates, and also because voters are tired of the NDP and its failure to address corruption, unemployment and poverty. The NDP has been in power for 24 years and has failed on more than one count. Now the government appeases the MB, in order to show how democratic it is, but nonetheless fights a fierce battle against all other opposition parties. It is as if the NDP decided to crush the weak and leave the strong for another day. We don't want the government to go back to its old ways. We don't want the government to bully candidates or rig elections. But we want the NDP to think of what it has done. This crisis is one that concerns us all. The NDP and the opposition have committed a serious political error, and the entire country will pay for it. The NDP fought for every parliamentary seat, as if for dear life. In doing so, it fielded candidates with no public support, who can at best rely on money and influence. The opposition is also to blame, for it has failed to rally the public or update its programmes and structure. This played into the hands of the MB, which has been as busy buying votes and deceiving voters as the NDP was. This is a crisis that the NDP and liberal opposition need to address. What country are we going to be having for the next five years? Let's think of the coming parliament and how it could possibly spearhead reform. The NDP may imagine it doesn't need an opposition, but it does. It needs a liberal and knowledgeable opposition, not a fundamentalist one. The NDP is to blame for the current fix and now it has to find us a way out.
