Should Egyptian TV satirist run for office?
SINCE the early 20th century, the Arab world’s most populous country has been led by a succession of authoritarian ex-military figures and an engineer rooted in the Muslim Brotherhood. None were successful in delivering their nation from poverty and corruption and, arguably, given that the population is currently ideologically divided and teetering on bankruptcy, Egyptians are worse off now than they’ve ever been with not even a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.
With the next presidential election due in 2016, the opposition needs to get its act together. The performance of opposition parties, thus far, has been dismal. Instead of secular and progressive parties coming together following the Jan. 25th revolution, they faced off against one another. Likewise, liberal presidential candidates with broadly similar agendas battled each other. By putting their personal aspirations before the nation’s welfare, they split the ballot permitting President Muhammad Mursi’s win by a whisker. And when things haven’t gone the way they would like, they incite street protests while encouraging their followers not to participate in parliamentary elections like kids in a schoolyard who stomp their feet saying “I’m not playing any more.”
The sad fact is that all the main opposition players, which have sort of coalesced under the National Salvation Front’s umbrella, are less than inspirational; their lackluster approach and their negative campaigning has done little for the opposition’s image. Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the nuclear watchdog the IAEA, and the Arab League’s former Secretary-General Amr Moussa, both worthy politicians in their own fashion, are hardly great orators capable of enthusing large crowds. And what Egypt needs most at this juncture in its history is someone who can unite and inspire the nation with his force of personality toward a better tomorrow. Within the political arena, there exists no one with those rare credentials, as far as can be judged.
But there is one Egyptian who may be well-placed to take on President Mursi in three years time if he sees fit to do so — the television satirist Bassem Youssef, host of “El Bernameg” (The Program) broadcast weekly on Egypt’s CBC network. Youssef, a medical doctor by profession, has come a long way since March 2011 when he began presenting his own show “the B+ Show” watched on YouTube by over 15 million viewers. He freely admits that he modeled his comedic take of current events on Jon Stewart’s “Daily Show” and was thrilled to be a guest on that show in June last year.
Like his American mentor, Youssef ruthlessly pokes fun at the country’s decision-makers as well as at anti-government talk show hosts such as Amr Adeeb and Tawfik Okasha, known for their passionate diatribes and haranguing of viewers to get up from their couches and take action. Today, El Bernameg is the most popular program on Egyptian television with over 30 million, mostly adoring, viewers; not surprising when there’s one thing that almost all Egyptians have in common — their enjoyment of a good joke. As popular as he undoubtedly is countrywide, his brand of humor crossing social and economic barriers, not everyone’s laughing. Indeed, in the highest quarters, Youssef’s growing influence is clearly perceived to be a real and present threat.
The top prosecutor appointed by Mursi has gone after him twice for allegedly insulting the president, which, in reality, is what people do in democracies where free speech is implicit — but not in Egypt where the controversial constitution expressly forbids it. On the first occasion, he was arrested for hugging a red, furry pillow embossed with the president’s image and parodying his speeches, but the case was sensibly thrown out. The latest attempt to gag him came in the form of an arrest warrant last Saturday. Escorted by a crowd of cheering fans, he promptly gave himself up to the prosecutor’s office, defiantly wearing elaborate graduation headwear, the kind worn by President Mursi when receiving his honorary doctorate from Pakistan’s University of Science and Technology.
Following several hours of questioning, Youssef was set free on bail in the sum of 15,000 Egyptian pounds. This is generally viewed by human rights advocates as somewhat of a test case in their battle against the government’s crackdown on dissent. Just how far are the authorities prepared to go in silencing its detractors and if the satirist is tried, convicted and imprisoned what impact will this have on media freedom? If Youssef does end up behind bars, it will be interesting to see how the nation reacts; it certainly won’t enhance the government’s popularity, just the opposite. And, in fact, the powers that be are playing a dangerous game when seemingly around a third of the population is entranced by his unique brand of charm and charisma and admiring of his personal courage. If he’s looked up to now, he’ll emerge from prison with even greater stature; perhaps that’s one of the reasons he doesn’t appear to be phased by the prospect.
I don’t know whether or not Bassem Yousef harbors presidential ambitions, and you may think I’ve lost my marbles even to suggest it. But I do think he could be just what the doctor ordered as the opposition’s main front man or, at the very least, its figurehead. After all, one of the most successful US presidents of all time was a former actor. Who knows, this physician turned satirist might just be tempted to reinvent himself again.
