Qiyada rasheeda – wise leadership (part 4 and last)
6 min readBy Joseph Lino Wuor Abyei, Cairo – Egypt
A lesson from Egypt
November 13, 2015 (SSB) — It was mentioned in one of the previous articles under the above title, that there is no comparison between South Sudan and Egypt in terms of “qiyada rasheeda,” because Egypt has been on the map for thousands of years and that it has known “qiyada rasheeda” thousands of years ago. In contrast South Sudan and similar countries, have yet to know the animal called “al qiyada al rasheeda.”
In some societies, including South Sudan perhaps, discussion on lack of “qiyada rasheeda” may bring some trouble to a writer. He/she may be summoned and investigated sometimes in the presence of the minister concerned, and in the end he/she may be remanded and possibly warned strongly if not “invited to spend several nights in safe custody.
In politically matured countries discussing the need for “qiyada rasheeda” or calling for political reform is not an issue at all because the problem of “qiyada rasheeda” and mechanisms for reform have been settled a long time ago.
This writer had a concise discussion with a young Egyptian in the hotel foyer in Cairo. The issue centered on the role of the youth to effect change in a society under any “qiyada,” albeit in the light of the last tumultuous Arab Spring uprising that took place in Egypt.
Majdi – not real name – the young Egyptian, was disgruntled as he expressed deep disappointment on how conditions had turned into after that “huge” Arab Spring” uprising that toppled Husni Mubarak.
This writer was trying to encourage him to go and vote in the elections, “never, this is all nonsense” Majdi replied.
Why? The writer asked him, “How are you young people going to effect a change if you do not participate in the elections?”
“Change cannot happen in this country at all,” Majdi said.
Then there was some polemics about the many ways change can take place in a society, one of which is the role of the youth, and he said that here in Egypt the youth can never bring change to bear. The writer assured him that it is the youth only who can bring change about in any society, and that presently the old generation, who are now in power, use the youth to stay in power. It is also the youth who can remove them. The young man refused to see the point.
Majdi was right to refuse to understand the logic behind the fact that only and only the youth are those capable to effect any forward change in their society. In the situation of Majdi, if he stays back and not vote the old guard will continue to be in power and they will never bring change about in the Egyptian society, and in any society with similar political bottle necks.
The problem Majdi should have understood, in the opinion of this writer, is that what happened in Egypt was a tug of war between the political Islam ideology and the rest of Egypt, not that of a mere political change staged by some discontented revolutionaries that if they succeed then “let us wait and see. And if they fail, then they are branded as “stupid demagogues” and soon forgotten.
Majdi may or may have not known that the so called Arab Spring” was and may still be a foreign masterminded “revolution” intended to install some puppets in the beards and ideology of Islam. In this context simple Muslims always tend to disassociate themselves from Al Ikhwan al Muslimeen,” but in a quiet tone, not so loud and not so strong enough lest they may be accused of anti-Islamism.
Majdi probably took the game in the simple context that the youth were sacrificing to change Husni who has been in the seat for too long and then “let us see what Mursi could do.” Majdi said that “we are disappointed; they should have allowed the system we brought up to stay for some time…”
This was and shall continue for some time to be a tug of war between Al Ikhwan al Muslimeen and all those who stood behind them, and the opposition forces, those who sensed a very high voltage danger that their country was targeted and was being hijacked and wanted it turned into a battle field like Libya, Iraq, Yemen… who on earth can accept that? That is how President Al Sisi succeeded to oust Mursi and tamed the streets.
Youth and change
This writer told Majdi that change in any society cannot take place with the force of the youth alone. What happens is that some hopeful politicians use this group of youth while the other politicians use the other group of the youth.
An Arab from Sudan told Majdi that he participated in toppling the regime of Ibrahim Abboud when he was young, and this writer seconded the view and assured that he himself also took part in that uprising against Abboud military regime in 1964. Then the system of government is run by politicians who are not youth at all. However,
Change in any society is essentially a young man’s function. Comparatively speaking, a country without young men is like a country without politicians. Both must exit side by side but sometimes like a cat and a mouse. They need each other; they complement each other, because the “qiyadat” of today were the youth of yesterday. But today, the elderly “qiyadat” use the young to stay in power, or use the youth to agitate for change in order to replace the present political forces, and the circle goes on.
There is a peaceful incremental change through ballot box and reforms, and there is a violent change of the system through the barrel of the gun and uprisings. There is an internal change and there is an induced external change. What was happening in Egypt and had happened in other Arab Spring uprising countries was more or less an externally guided change, rather than internally brought about changes.
Some readers may see some similarity between this kind of a regime change and what was about to happen in South Sudan when some leaders began to suspect that there was a plan for a regime change.
The writer told Majdi that necessarily change takes place through the youth who will one day be in positions of authority, and told him to be “patient, your time will come.” Majdi shrugged it off.
In the meantime, the old guards have a duty to maintain the status quo and show “qiyada rasheeda” so that the young generation may not get hijacked, radicalized and revolutionized beyond the national interests.
According to this writer, what had happened in Egypt during the “Arab Spring” uprising is a lesson on “qiyada rasheeda.” In the opinion of this writer the regime under Al Sisi has demonstrated the tactics of a “qiyada rasheed” in the sense that it was able to confront the external forces appropriately without compromising the Egyptian “national interests.” It has also succeeded so far in taming the Akhwan Al Muslimeen wild cats. Today the streets of Cairo and the entire Egypt are so calm you can walk up and down the streets without fear.
Just imagine if Islamically radicalized some sectors of the youth were to prevail, what would have been the probable consequences? Mubarak and his people would have been hung a long time ago. Then imagine the reaction of his tribesmen?
How different is this situation from that in South Sudan?
You can reach the author via his email: josephabyei@yohaa.com
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