It will take much more than the recent ministerial reshuffle to satisfy a frustrated general public, reports Shaden Shehab With the 12th cabinet since Hosni Mubarak became president in 1981 beginning its work this week, the public appeared highly sceptical about the recent reshuffle doing much to improve conditions, or help them meet their most basic needs. "Ministers come and ministers go," said civil servant Yehia Ahmed, "and it always seems that they are serving people other than average citizens." Ahmed said the people need "a new government that will fulfil our needs." Ahmed and others inteviewed by Al-Ahram Weekly want -- but not necessarily expect -- "miracles" from the new cabinet. They want to drink clean water, eat fruits and vegetables that are not sprayed with pesticides that cause cancer, educate their children without depending on private tutoring, live in affordable flats, and be paid salaries that are in accordance with sky-rocketing prices. Those things, combined with access to government services that help rather than hinder, are citizens' rights, they said. Others, like Hassanein Khedr, a street vendor who sells grilled corn, have dreams that are even more basic. Khedr and others said they want to be able to find a job, eat edible bread, receive the most basic medical treatment, and occasionally afford to eat meat. If one looked at statistics alone, the sheer immensity of the challenges facing the government becomes clear. According to 2002-2003 Planning Ministry statistics, the unemployment rate is 10.3 per cent (out of a total population of about 70 million), the poverty rate is at 17 per cent, and illiteracy stands at 31.9 per cent. Some do see hope in the recent reshuffle. "The best thing," said housewife Mervat El-Hamzawi, "is that [Former Prime Minister Atef] Ebeid left, and took ministers that have been in power for more than 20 years with him." For El-Hamzawi, "this in itself is an accomplishment." Housewife Buthayna Ahmed agreed that the change in itself was positive, since it "got rid of" the old guard, and brought in "new blood with new thinking". Others, like insurance company employee Hani Mustafa, said, "we cannot judge whether the new ministers were chosen properly since the general public is not familiar with most of them." Mustafa did say, however, "it was a good sign that most of them are young; after all, we have always asked for younger ministers." Mustafa was also optimistic about the fact that "most of the new ministers are working in their fields of experience and knowledge." Fourteen of the 34-member cabinet are newcomers who are less than 50-years-old, while Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif himself is "only" 52. Many predicted that Nazif, the former communications and information minister, would -- as prime minister -- drive the nation towards a new "era of technology". Others thought his "clean record" made him a good choice. Engineer Hussein Ismail, however, said someone more economically or politically-oriented should have been selected. Nazif's "appointment raises question marks, since being successful in telecommunications is one thing, and improving the country's economy is another thing altogether", Ismail said. "Appointing Nazif is simply window-dressing," said Sayed El-Hagg, a retired civil servant. "We are trying to show the world that our fundamental issue is improving our technological standing." Several people interviewed by the Weekly said the new government's success depends on the reason for its formation. Is it an attempt to improve conditions in the country'? Is it merely an interim government until the 2005 parliamentary elections and presidential referendum? Or is it an indication of the greater political influence of Gamal Mubarak, head of the NDP policies committee and the president's son? The new government, after all, will have to resign in October 2005 with the presidential and parliamentary elections. "The president wants to please the public [before the referendum]," said a university student who preferred his name not to be mentioned. "That's why he dismissed the most unpopular ministers, and has said that the new government is here to lift Egyptians' living standards." Another man -- whose wife pleaded with him to not reveal his name or profession -- said, "the whole idea was to get people used to the idea of younger people taking over, which will lead to Gamal Mubarak becoming the secretary-general of the NDP, where he will gain enough popularity to help convince people that he is an acceptable successor for his father." Such a hypothesis might be a result of the fact that Nazif is a close associate to the younger Mubarak and that eight new cabinet ministers are members of the NDP Policies Committee he heads. "The reshuffle indicates that Gamal Mubarak is already powerful," said the man, "and it is a matter of time before he becomes more powerful." Many approached by the Weekly preferred to remain silent. "I don't talk about politics," some said. "It's not my job to evaluate the president's decision," was another common answer. The most frequent response was a variation on: "Who cares what people think, since the top officials have their own agenda, and whether we like it or not, what they want to happen, will happen."
