16/9/2013

The cowardly attempt on the life of Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim brings us face to face with tough questions about our police force. Were the measures taken to protect the minister adequate, for example? We also have to ask ourselves if the dismantling of the State Security (now renamed the National Security) service, in Morsi’s time, advisable?

Other questions, far more important, also come to mind. I am trying not to be paranoid, but isn’t there a chance that our security services were infiltrated by Morsi’s people during the Muslim Brotherhood’s rule. To put it bluntly, did Morsi appoint supporters in key positions as spies?

During the year of Morsi’s rule, the ousted president signed what I would call illegal decrees ordering the release of convicted terrorists. And once they gained their freedom, they proceeded to commit acts of terrorism and bring weapons into Sinai, turning it into a haven for criminals and a hotbed of terror. As a result, our security forces and many civilians have lost their lives.

Two weeks before Morsi was removed from office, he did the unthinkable. The then president invited Abbud El Zomor, the very man who planned the assassination of President Sadat, to attend a conference about Ethiopia’s controversial dam.

Now I have two questions to ask: has the state really activated the emergency law? And, if so, why are we still allowing the MB to organize demonstrations that bring life to a standstill in some parts of our cities, or lead to bloody clashes with civilians?

Last Friday, MB supporters smashed shops in Mohandessin and threatened peaceful citizens. We need to be more strict about demonstrations, especially now that the new school year is about to begin. If we allow the current disruptions to continue, the safety of our children will be compromised.

Let’s not forget that demonstrations are a costly affair, which means that someone is paying a lot of money to ensure that our streets remain in turmoil. I wonder, for example, who allowed the drivers of the buses carrying the MB supporters to conceal their license numbers with the sign of Raba’a al- Adaweya?

We must put a stop to all of this. More specifically, we cannot allow people from Gaza and Hamas to help our criminals make bombs and detonate them. Our people have suffered enough already.

translated from Al Youm 7