Doaa El-Bey previews not the candidate but the kind of voter needed for the upcoming People's Assembly elections, while Rasha Saad assesses the consequences as the last American combat brigade pulls out of Iraq The disappearance of Van Gogh's famed painting "The Poppy Flower" from Khalil's Museum got the attention of most newspapers this week. Al-Ahram wrote on its front page "Prosecutor- general accuses Ministry of Culture of negligence", Al Wafd 's banner read "Prosecution reveals alarm system and surveillance cameras in the museum were not working", Rose Al-Youssef wrote "Farouk Hosni admits negligence" and Al-Masry Al-Yom read "Prosecution accuses 14 officials from the Ministry of Culture of negligence". In another development this week, the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) opened the door for its members who seek to run for the People's Assembly elections due later this year. Mohamed El-Shamaa wrote that to be elected the first step should be to initiate a reformation battle and amend the local authorities' laws to give more power to the officials to question governors. El-Shamaa expressed hope that voters will be alert enough in the election to put the train of democracy back on track and give their vote to efficient candidates who are willing to represent the people in an honourable way. He also hoped that the new parliament would top its list of priorities with a new law that would give all the legal parties a political presence through well-defined programmes, as there is no real democracy without a multi-political party system. El-Shamaa concluded in the official daily Al-Akhbar by calling on opposition parties to learn from previous experiences, present clear-cut programmes to voters and activate the role of its members so that they can be part of a democracy. The campaigns supporting Gamal Mubarak were criticised by many writers this week. Columnist Nabil Rashwan wondered who was behind the campaign since the ruling NDP declared it did not support it. However, it did not oppose it either. He questioned the benefits of this kind of campaigning that did not present a programme, or a pledge of reformation or calls for amendments. Rashwan also asked why allow such campaigns and reject similar campaigns launched by other people. "Why don't we arrange debates between the presidential candidates in order to get to know their programmes and find out who is capable of meeting the people's demands? "The issue is not in the candidate but in who would be elected in democratic fashion. Who would abide by a time-framed schedule to meet the needs of the people especially those of the poor classes who are on the increase," Rashwan wrote in the independent daily Nahdet Masr. Karima Kamal wrote that in any place in the world a presidential candidate is backed in a well publicised campaign in which the supporters and financiers of that campaign are known. But, she added in the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Yom, Gamal Mubarak's campaign has become a riddle that puzzles many writers who have tried to analyse the campaign and question who was behind it or financed it, and more importantly whether the president himself knew about the campaign or accepted it. These writers presented many assumptions, including the possibility that Gamal Mubarak did not know anything about the campaign. Kamal found that possibility absurd because if it were true, he would have openly denied any knowledge of the campaign. However, what the writer saw as the most ridiculous of all was the redistribution of the song "Oh, Gamal, you are the king of hearts of millions" which was written and sung for President Gamal Abdel-Nasser. "Are we required to see in Gamal Mubarak a successor to Gamal Abdel-Nasser?" Kamal wrote. "Is there anything more absurd than using our feelings for a part of our history to campaign for what is planned for us against our will and our history?" The majority of Egyptian families are currently suffering from either a repeated power failure or water cuts or both. Writers discussed the crises, how to prevent them in the future and lessons to be learnt from them. Abdullah Kamal wrote that we should thank the electricity crisis because it pointed to the deficiencies that should be dealt with. He called on the Ministry of Electricity to note a few facts: if we achieve big progress in generating electricity, would that progress by accompanied by similar progress in the distribution networks? What are the standards for maintenance and assessing the performance of the electricity sector? Does the minister of electricity need to change or enlarge the team working with him? Where are the alternative sources for generating energy like wind? "The Ministry of Electricity should find positives to the crisis which could help it overcome a similar crisis next summer due to the rise in temperature," Kamal wrote in the independent daily newspaper Rose Al-Youssef. Samir Ragab talked about his personal suffering with the power and water cuts this week. He started his column in the official daily Al-Gomhuriya by emphasising that he did not have a fixed address anymore because he moved from his apartment in New Cairo -- where all utilities are expected to be in good condition -- to his less luxurious and older flat in Nasr City because of a long water cut. But he was surprised to find a rise and fall in the supply of electric power, something that heralds a power cut. As a result, he was forced to move to his village where he found his family suffering from both electricity and water cuts. Although Ragab had alternatives, he did not manage to find a place where the basic needs of life -- water and light -- are provided continuously. Newspapers showed pictures and told stories of many other less privileged families who were forced to live on candlelight and get their need of water from dirty canals for several days.
