CAIRO: Field Marshal Mohamed Tantawy's visit to downtown Cairo on Monday night stirred ironic responses on social networking websites that commented on the visit harshly after state television aired footage of him wondering around in civilian clothes shaking hands with people. Tantawy walked on foot around the streets of downtown smiling and shaking hands without personal guards. Activists and commentators accused him of “a propaganda tour” and said he intends to nominate himself for the presidency. New Facebook pages sprouted up quickly, mocking the visit in the civilian attire and calling it a step further for the “dreams of the presidency.” One page called “I will not live in the Marshal's suit,” said “Egypt is not a military base and why is it the dream of all soldiers to rule, we all want to feel the wind of change,” while on Twitter the hashtag “BadletTantawy” or “Tantawy's suit” saw hundreds of ironic comments, some saying that the suit will not help him gain popularity. Others joked, saying a civil suit “will not help gain anything.” Tantawy, the chief of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), the ruling body of Egypt during the transitional period, had visited Tahrir previously following the January uprising that toppled the former regime, announcing the loyalty of the army to the people and promising a transition of power to an elected civil government within 6 months. Eight months later and tens of marches and demonstrations calling for an end to military rule of the country continue. Elections dates have finally been set for November 21. The Egyptian people remain divided because of the military. Some view it remaining in power because they have to and others see it seizing power because they like to. Since the SCAF took power in February, over 12,000 Egyptians have faced military trials, in which rulings are swift and not up for appeal, and many of the detainees are bloggers and activists. The military also reactivated the emergency laws, one of the forces behind the January uprising and said it will remain active until the summer of 2012. BM
