PRIME Minister Ahmed Nazif only has himself to blame for the passions his recent visit to the flood-hit areas of Sinai aroused. The Premier would overcome his discomfiture and disappointment, if he better understood the reasons for the violent reception he was given as soon as he popped into a conference hall in the Al-Arish municipality in North Sinai Governorate. After touring several areas and surveying the damage to homes, roads and fields, the Premier decided to explain his plans to compensate the homeless and repair destroyed services. However, his visit came too late. He made up his mind to travel to Sinai three days after the destructive flooding. The people there weren't happy that the widowed Premier had decided to delay his inspection visit because he was furnishing a new family home, in anticipation of his wedding next month. At the planned press conference, the key speaker (the would-be bridegroom) and his audience were thinking about very different things. The devastated audience had lost their homes, possessions, businesses and furniture in the floods. The mind of the Premier, like any other bridegroom, irrespective of the age factor, was apparently elsewhere, thinking about arranging the transportation of expensive furniture to the new marital home. Unlike his traumatised audience, the powerful bridegroom was beaming with happiness. It seems that the Premier thought these people would courteously set aside, albeit temporarily, their grim sufferings and heartily congratulate him on his forthcoming marriage. Nazif's advisers should have explained to him that it wasn't the time nor the place to entertain metaphysical speculations about human nature. Nor did his advisers stress that he should give comforting statements, not the snobby remarks, the likes of which he has come up with in the past. (A few years ago, Nazif told a foreign news network that the Egyptian people were 'democratically illiterate'). For the first time in the history of the premiership in Egypt, PM Ahmed Nazif was forced to cancel his press conference in Al-Arish. Stepping into the conference hall, the angry crowds (homeless people) became uncontrollable and yelled hysterically, especially after they'd been informed of the unfortunate remarks he'd made during his inspection tour. Nazif allegedly blamed the homeless people for building their homes in the middle of floodplains. The dismayed audience shouted angrily at him, calling for his immediate departure, as he'd come too late and made very shocking statements. Appeals from the city's governor to pipe down and listen to the Premier went unheard, drowned by the booing from the agitated people. The Premier's guards wisely reasoned that if he didn't leave immediately, the commotion would escalate to dangerous proportions. Fearing for his safety, they whisked Nazif away. The crestfallen governor looked sternly at his homeless people before stomping off …quot; with his aides …quot; to bid farewell to the Premier. Extraordinary festivities On the occasion of the Police Day, an official national holiday this year, the Traffic Police announced that they would suspend the tough traffic law for three days. This suspension was very surprising, but what wasn't very surprising was that the number of road accidents didn't decrease. Reckless, deadly motorists just carried on driving like madmen as usual.
