Hour of Decison Looms in Egypt

By Dwight L. Schwab Jr.    

Muslim Brotherhood Planning a Return?

The former prime minister of Egypt now running hard for ousted Hosni Mubarak's job as president has accused the Muslim Brotherhood of planning a return to the dark ages for Egypt. Ahmed Shafig made those comments in a highly charged campaign against the controversial Muslim Brotherhood.

The speech came amidst the call by Egyptian lawmakers for a new investigation into the protests last year during the January 2011 uprising. The growing turmoil on Saturday turned more boisterous Sunday when it was announced that six senior officers were acquitted.

Protest in Cairo's Tahrir Square

Tens of thousands protested in Cairo's Tahrir Square not only over the acquittals but also Mubarak's sentence. Many felt he should have been hanged. Much like Saddam Hussein.

The rulings come just ahead of the June 16 runoff starting this weekend between the Muslim Brother's candidate, Mohammed Murai and Shafig.

"I represent transparency and light," Shafig said in a televised news conference. The Brotherhood represents darkness and secrets. No one knows who they are and what they do."

Shafig, the one-time prime minister under Mubarak in his final days, accused the Brotherhood of bribing families with compensation for loved ones killed in last year's protests. "It was the Brotherhood that asked them to renounce their rights in exchange for blood money," Shafig said.

The Brotherhood's spokesmen, Mahmoud Ghozlan, accused Shafig of distorting the truth. Speaking to the state-run Ahram Gate website that Shafig was representing a group of his own failings and purposely inciting unrest.

The Mubarak Trial

Millions of Egyptians watched the Mubarak trial closely anxious to see what Egyptian justice would render as its verdict with the strongman no longer in power after three decades. Roughly 850 people were killed in the protests last year.

The acquittal of six senior police officers was interpreted by Mubarak's opponents as groundwork for the former president's appeal.

Whatever the outcome of this weekend's runoff, it will provide serious reconsideration of America's once staunch relationship with Egypt.

That "reconsideration" will only be magnified ten-fold should the Brotherhood emerge the victor.

Dwight L. Schwab Jr. is a moderate conservative who looks at all sides of a story, then speaks his mind. His BS in journalism from University of Oregon with minors in political science and American history stands him in good stead for his writing. Read more stories by Dwight L. Schwab Jr..