Guardian Some more lessons from Egypt WEDNESDAY, 21 AUGUST 2013 00:00 EDITOR OPINION - EDITORIAL TRUE to predictions, including this newspaper’s, the lingering political impasse engulfing Egypt, sparked by divisions over the military deposition of President Mohammed Morsi, is indeed heading towards some unfathomable end. But wherever it leads, the hard lessons that should have been learnt from popular defiance, namely, that mature and sagely political craftsmanship demands inclusiveness for a stable and peaceful polity, and that the people’s power should not be taken for granted under any guise, are still unheeded. To make matters worse, what started during last week as police dispersal of a protest march in Cairo over the appointment of army officers as local governors, ended up by weekend in bloody violent clashes with security forces. Hundreds of people have so far died in the clashes and thousands reportedly injured. Despite this bloody situation, the Muslim Brotherhood has continued to call for daily protests; an incident so worrisome to the government that it was contemplating a ban of the brotherhood to avert chaos. If Egypt is to recoil from its looming march towards anarchy it must quickly forge a reconciliatory move that would involve negotiation with the deposed President Morsi. Anything short of this could cause more instability in the country and aggravate tension in the Middle East. Already, Egypt’s neighbours are worried about the instability the crisis poses on the region, and are as divided in their reaction as Egyptians. While in Lebanon, Hezbollah, which is ideologically linked to the Muslim Brotherhood, have lent their weight to the pro-Morsi protests, Israel has remained silent. On the other hand, countries like Jordan, Saudi Arabia, etc are calling for the rule of law, and are imploring the United Nations to take an important step to address the situation. Circumstantially, therefore, Egypt finds itself at political crossroads that infringes on its historical and diplomatic relevance to the global community. Being the biggest nation in the Arab world, ensconced strategically as a regional power in the Middle East, and also a veritable host to some of the world’s best monuments and civilizational heritage, Egypt cannot afford to fail politically. Therefore, it is in everybody’s interest not to have the largest country in the Middle East descend into chaos. It is for this reason that a proposal towards ‘reconciliation’ be encouraged and promptly pursued. Egyptians must embrace dialogue and put forward measures of inclusiveness in order to advance a broad-based government reflective of the country’s endangered unity. Every faction in the ephemeral Egyptian divide must realize that it possesses no real advantage over other groups in the beleaguered country. Embracing dialogue and working towards inclusiveness require that all parties in the crisis advance negotiation in the interest of Egypt. Whatever the political gaffes and administrative foibles of the deposed president, he is still an important actor in the ongoing crisis. The mandate to steer the ship of the Egyptian state, notwithstanding the turbulent course it has to take, was freely given by the people when he became the first democratically elected president of Egypt. Egypt’s military and interim government should exploit the opportunity of his safe-keeping to engage with him in a manner that should largely ensure no loss of face for him and the Muslim Brotherhood, while a new course is charted for the country. Considering the various interests that are going to be affected by the outcome of this exercise, Egyptians must look for good and credible negotiators; persons who empathize with the aspirations of the people, understand the timely nature of remolding Egypt socio-politically, and would not be stooges of self-seeking manipulators of the process. Egypt, at this time, hangs on the precipice as it endures a difficult transition. Yet, just as the people’s mandate to freely choose the repository of their sovereign power rests on the people, so the power to bring the country out of the morass of impending anarchy rests on the people. In this regard, the Egyptian people should recoil from the irrational bandwagon that leads to mob-crazy violence and clashes with security forces, and embrace reconciliation. To Nigeria and its people, the Egypt experience may seem far-flung, yet the derivable lessons therefrom have universal application. Given the mounting heat over 2015, the political barometer suggests that Nigeria is Egypt in the embryo. But Nigerians need not wait for a complete gestation and then get saddled with a needless ‘difficult’ transition. All, leaders and the led, should, once again, heed the lesson from Egypt: power belongs to the people and they (the people) freely repose it in trust in any government. The people should never be taken for granted.
Posted on: Wed, 21 Aug 2013 07:27:58 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015