THE name of the Governor of Cairo Abdel- Azeem Wazir immediately springs to the mind of Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif, if he (the Premier) is asked about which person he hates most – in his Cabinet or among the governors of Egypt's governorates. Much to the Premier's disgust, he had to disrupt his honeymoon to save Wazir's blood from being shed by angry MPs, belonging to the ruling party, the opposition and the independents. Led by the ruling party's whip Ahmed Ezz, MPs unanimously declared war on the Governor of Cairo for allegedly abusing his office to insult Parliament and MPs. 'War', 'Revenge' and 'Down with the Governor' echoed round the parliamentary dome when MP Moustafa el-Sallab (a NDP MP representing Nasr City) made an impassioned plea to the Parliament Speaker and his colleagues to save him from the war of attrition he, his family and his constituents are suffering from. Speaking like an ordinary citizen, the multimillionaire MP (a tycoon who has made his money out of ceramics) claimed that the Governor of Cairo mobilised his engineers and bulldozers to demolish properties and businesses his family own in different areas in Cairo. El-Sallab's voice quavered when he complained that he was paying the price for his strong opposition a few months ago to the Governor's decision to dismantle buildings that had allegedly been constructed illegally in Ezbet el-Hagana district of Nasr City. Addressing the Parliament Speaker and deputies, the worried MP said: “Please help me. I need your help now, as my properties and businesses are being demolished as we speak”. Angry voices shouted: “We have been insulted,” and “This Governor has overstepped the mark and should be taught a harsh lesson,” as the atmosphere turned tense under the parliamentary dome. Riding on the outburst of these passions, the MP added: “The Governor of Cairo has vowed to his assistants that he'll make me rue the day I ever decided to obstruct his orders to demolish the homes of downtrodden citizens”. Voices calling for the Governor's scalp deadened appeals from the Speaker for silence. The parliamentary hall was plunged into chaos as MPs, ignoring the Speaker's request, jumped to their feet and declared war, 'to restore their colleague's dignity and theirs as well'. Someone was heard to say: “There is a despicable conspiracy ahead of the general elections [later this year],” while someone else shouted: “The dignity of our colleague should be restored immediately”. Unable to control the agitated warriors and their crestfallen colleague, the Parliament Speaker beckoned the ruling party's whip to the podium. There was a deathly hush as Ezz, the iron and steel mogul of the Middle East and Africa, snatched the mic and said tartly: “We are experiencing corruption and a despicable abuse of power. Parliament has been insulted”. Ezz's comment met with deafening cheers from the entire hall. The Speaker ordered the Governor of Cairo to be subpoenaed to explain his actions the following day. Given the cue from their whip, ruling party MPs sharpened their claws ahead of the Governor's arrival in Parliament. One deputy allegedly vowed to shoot Wazir, who, unsurprisingly, didn't show up the next day. The Prime Minister must have cursed when he was informed of the hot water the Governor of Cairo had got himself in. The Governor was saved - temporarily - when Nazif disrupted his romantic holiday to go to his office to sign a decree, which revoked the Governor's decision to demolish the MP's properties and businesses. Nevertheless, the Cairo Governor's safety and future in office are still in limbo. [email protected]
