Dear Muslim Brotherhood members, This is a decisive moment in the history of your group and our nation. This is no time for compliments or emotions. Please read these words carefully because they are useful. I may be hard on you, but I do that for the sake of God. We did not forget your meeting with Omar Suleiman, though you had told the revolutionaries that there would be no dialogue before Mubarak left. We did not forget your deal with the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces immediately after the revolution, which I think the constitutional amendments were evidence of. And we did not forget your silence towards the massacres of Maspero, Mohamed Mahmoud, the Cabinet, and Port Said stadium, where the blood that was shed appeared to mean nothing to you. Have you forgotten that what goes round comes round? Amidst all the bloodshed, you were only interested in the parliamentary elections, although those elections could not have been held without that blood. First you said legitimacy meant parliamentary legitimacy, then when you needed the support of the masses, you said legitimacy was that of Tahrir Square. What do you make of that? Do you think people forget? Do you think they are stupid? The people lost confidence in you when you took up the mantle of deception and dishonesty. God gave you the opportunity of a lifetime, but you were not up to it. You did not realize that you won the presidency by a stick-thin margin, and that the eight million who voted for you did so to spite the alternative. And then, instead of appreciating them, you concentrated on your own clan. Your slogan - “Our Strength is in Our Unity” - was but a tool to ascend to power, while your miserable Constitutional Declaration that made a pharoah of Mohamed Morsy pulled the country into chaos and violence, eroding the rule of law. You promised retribution for the martyrs, then stood still. Actually, the number of dead under your rule came to 154. You promised social justice, the third goal of the revolution, but did nothing. Tens of millions of people took to the streets on 30 June and 3 July to withdraw their confidence in you. Had it not been for those millions, the army would not have removed Morsy. You should have respected their will, for they are the source of power and legitimacy. Instead, you stood against them and started threatening, hence the Republican Guard violence. Do you want to fail again? It is not a matter of faith or infidelity to you. It is a matter of power and politics. Do not shed the blood of the youth for your political goals. Do you think people would believe you again? Do you want to destroy the country? You amaze me. You do not want to defy your leadership, the cause of the failure, although it is a normal practice in civil society, but you demand the members of the armed forces to defy their leadership, a practice unheard of in the military. Beware, for you are thereby trying to destroy the most important institution of the state. And that is treason. I pity you, for instead of trying to restore the confidence of the masses, you call on the West to help you, whereas the West only cares about its own interest and that of the Zionist enemy. Wake up, for you have lost all reasoning. Instead of wasting time and effort in protests, reconsider matters, now that you have failed. You need to adapt to reality. You preferred power to preaching and lost both. Gel was interested in power at the expense of education and advocacy, wiping out this and that. If I were you, I would start again. This is the best option for you - and the nation. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm Mohamed Habib was a Deputy General Guide and the second-in-command of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood. He was tipped to become the next leader of the organization after former Supreme Guide Mohammed Mahdi Akef announced his resignation in April 2009. Instead, Habib left the Muslim Brotherhood and has since become a critic of Mohamed Morsy. Habib is said to be a moderate, and had been seen as a reformist member within the organization. He rejects terrorism and violence and supports democracy. Habib is also the founder of the Renaissance Party.
