Monday, January 13, 2014

Abayomi Azikiwe, PANW Editor, Featured on Press TV: 'Al-Sisi Brings Back Mubarak Era'

Al-Sisi move is to bring back Mubarak era: A. Azikiwe

Interview with Abayomi Azikiwe

Sun Jan 12, 2014 5:5PM GMT

To watch this Press TV interview with Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire, just click on the website below:
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/01/12/345228/alsisi-positioning-will-enable-a-new-mubarak/

Press TV has interviewed Abayomi Azikiwe, Editor of Pan African News Wire, about Egypt's military leader General al-Sisi who has announced he will run for the country's presidency if he gets support.

What follows is an approximate transcript of the interview.

Press TV: How serious are al-Sisi's ambitions and does he resonate with the people to be able to make it to office?

Azikiwe: I think they're very serious. And when you say the people I think the question is which people, which sectors of Egyptian society would be supportive of General al-Sisi seeking the presidency? This is an issue that goes back for several months.

The Tamarod movement, the so-called rebel movement, which has accepted credit for mobilizing the people in the demonstrations leading up to the military coup on July 3rd has already floated the idea several months ago that General al-Sisi should seek the presidency under this new revised draft of the amended constitution, which will be foisted upon the Egyptian people to vote on, on January 14th and 15th.

There is a history of military involvement in politics in Egypt going all the way back to 1952 with the officer's coup led by Nasser... And of course with the split with the Muslim Brotherhood in 1954, the only real difference of course – and it is a fundamental difference – is that under Nasser it was an anti-imperialist military-oriented
government.

After the break in relations with the Soviet Union in the mid-1970s, Anwar Sadat - his allegiance shifted to the United States of course, the army in Egypt since then has had an orientation towards the West.

So this would be a continuation of the same process that had prevailed under Mubarak for three decades. I think it's a danger to the anti-militarist forces inside of Egypt itself.

Press TV: Many say that the Egyptian revolution has been hijacked. What are the chances that the Egyptian revolution and its goals would be once again revived?

Azikiwe: Well it has to come from the grassroots level. A lot of the people who did initially support the coup d'état for example the April 6th Youth Movement; and there are others as well - the National Salvation Front, have now taken a position in opposition to this committee of 50, which drafted this amended constitution.

There are growing demonstrations that are taking place on the campuses and the level of repression right now in Egypt is not sustainable from the standpoint that they are going to be able to minimize the opposition to military rule inside the country.

So I think this will fuel even more opposition among the youth, among the workers and among the public intellectuals inside of Egypt itself when and if al-Sisi decides to throw his hat in the ring and become a presidential candidate to take over the state of Egypt.

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