Why leave now?

To whom was the coup leader directing his speech given on the Prophet’s birthday? Was it directed at those present in the hall, the scholars and masses, to the sponsors of his coup, i.e. the countries funding him, or to the military council that brought him into power in order to establish the military rule that continued for 63 years?

We saw him in an emotional scene where he used his eyes, as the Egyptians would say, to portray an image of an emotional man and to play an influential role, but at the same time he was anxious, scared and worried. It was as if he was pleading with them to be gentle and merciful towards him if they decide to overthrow him. He stated that if the entire nation wanted him to go, he wouldn’t stay in office another second, and that there was no need for them to take to the streets and put the country at risk. He also said that it is enough to look at the surrounding countries (without naming them) to see what is happening there. This part of his speech was specifically directed at the masses, in order to provoke fear and horror of a tragic fate that awaits them. He likened this fate to the fate of the Syrian, Libyan, or Iraqi nations, a matter his media mouthpieces have been promoting across all outlets under the authority of the coup leader.

This is the same meaning implied by his ousted successor, Hosni Mubarak, in his famous speech before stepping down; either me or chaos. These two leaders implied the same message as any tyrant dictator wanting to rule their country with iron and fire. They depict life without them as devastation and destruction, claiming that they are the ones maintaining the security of the country and that they are the sole saviours of the country from destruction.

This tyrannical regime carries the seeds of its destruction, and it knows very well that it is a fragile and weak regime, despite the strength and domination it seems to have by means of the tanks and weapons used to oppress the people and impose the fait accompli by force of weapons. Therefore, the fear and concern that was apparent on the coup leader’s face, on the face of the man who has grown to fear even those closest to him and his supporters, has caused him to eliminate them one by one. This is cited by the fact that he eliminated Major General Mohamed Al-Assar (America’s man in the army) from the military council and as minister of military production, in preparation to completely get rid of him in the next ministerial change. Al-Sisi’s partner in the coup, Defence Minister Sedki Sobhi, has completely disappeared from the scene.

The spotlight is now focused on his son’s father-in-law, Chief of Staff Mahmoud Hegazy, as Al-Sisi wants to make a constitutional amendment that would allow him to overthrow Hegazy. This is because under the current constitution, which he tailored to suit him while he was defence minister, he is unable to overthrow him. Now that he is president he must again tailor the constitution to fit his new position. Traitors always fear being betrayed. Just like he betrayed his president, he is afraid that his defence minister will betray him and repeat the same scenario of treachery and coup. Just a few days ago he dismissed 12 intelligence officers and put them on pensions. This is the fourth batch of intelligence officers he has dismissed and put on pensions since officially taking office.

It has also become very clear that he is afraid that the youth will mobilise on 25 January with the increased calls for taking to the streets and regaining the revolution stolen from them by the military. Therefore, a widespread arrest campaign was launched against the revolutionary youth from the April 6 Youth Movement, as well as other revolutionary movements. He even visited the police academy to meet officers and praise their work, despite the incidents of murder and torture inside prisons, as well as the forced disappearances monitored by local and international human rights organisations.

This visit sends a clear message to the police to do whatever they want and that there will be no repercussions for their actions. The message also implies that Al-Sisi will protect them on the condition that they protect him from any protests against him. Therefore, after his visit, he issued a presidential decree cancelling all military trials for police officers. The question remains: will the police and army protect him from the advancement and mobilisation of the masses, or will they be the first to flee?

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.