President Mohamed Morsy delivered a speech Saturday, touting various successes and improvements in services since his election in June while drawing varying assessments from different commentators.
Speaking to thousands of supporters in Cairo Stadium during an event marking the 39th anniversary of the 1973 war with Israel, Morsy paid tribute to the Armed Forces and its leaders who were involved in the war.
The president had promised to tackle an array of problems during his first 100 days in office, but critics say he has failed to deal with the vast majority of the issues he highlighted at the beginning of his term. Anti-Muslim Brotherhood journalist and former MP Mostafa Bakry said Morsy mocked his opponents while failing to address impediments to his 100-day plan and introduce a clear vision for the future.
"This is no celebration of the October War, this is a Brotherhood gathering meant to cheer for the president. Thousands of buses carrying Brotherhood backers from various provinces to Cairo. I wonder who paid for that? Has the Brotherhood replaced the state?" he wrote on his Facebook page.
Author Alaa al-Aswany was similarly dour in his assessment of Morsy’s speech. "Lobbying supporters, guarding the Pharaoh, figurative speech, praising the glories of imaginary people while the real people are suffering, all are signs that Morsy tends to repeat Mubarak," he said on his Twitter account Sunday. "Morsy vowed in his speech that he would not buy a new car, but he already does not need that, thanks to an army of cars and planes he inherited from Mubarak."
However, Morsy said that the country was moving towards stability, security and social justice. Addressing fuel shortages, Morsy claimed that 85 percent of butane gas needs and 107 percent of fuel needs have been met, while adding that efforts against fuel corruption and smuggling are still ongoing, with 23 million liters of smuggled fuel confiscated and two Petroleum Ministry officials slapped with lawsuits.
“We still have a long way to go, but we have a clear vision and a will to see a better future,” Morsy said. “I bear responsibility alongside you to proceed with our mission within the 100 days and beyond.”
Morsy said that the budget deficit has gone down to LE140 billion this year from LE170 billion, contradicting Finance Minister Momtaz al-Saeed’s Wednesday statement that the budget deficit is, in fact, LE170 billion. The president stressed the importance of subsidies for needy citizens and assured investors that the state respects its contracts as long as they are legal.
He added that recent sit-ins and strikes, especially by teachers and doctors, have voiced legitimate demands but warned that they should not hinder production.
Other accomplishments Morsy touted were the removal of 1,150,000 tons of garbage from various governorates, improving bread production, increasing traffic police presence and alleviating traffic, improving security and stabilizing the Egyptian economy. He also defended a US$4.8 billion loan request from the IMF, saying, “I would never accept that Egyptians benefit from a usury loan.”
Despite criticism, other commentators reacted positively to the speech. "If elections are to be repeated, Morsy will win 80 percent of votes," media host Alaa Sadeq said on Twitter. "His speech reached the minds and hearts of listeners. It was very frank.”
Presidential adviser Ayman al-Sayyad said he was glad to see “signs of transparency” in Morsy’s speech. “Either we agree or disagree with him, [but] transparency was the main feature of Morsy’s speech,” he said on Twitter.
