HOSNI MUBARAK sought to boost his battered image as Egypt’s leader yesterday, flaunting the support of the armed forces, whose loyalty he will need to retain if he is to survive in office.
The embattled president was shown on state television visiting an army operations centre; listening to briefings as if directing a battle; and flanked by his new deputy, Omar Suleiman, and defence minister Mohamed Hussein Tantawi.
With protesters and opposition parties demanding Mr Mubarak’s immediate departure, he is showing his instinctive reliance on the military, backbone of the Egyptian regime since Gamal Abdel Nasser and his fellow “free officers” overthrew the monarchy in the 1952 revolution.
Mr Mubarak’s key move has been the appointment of Mr Suleiman, his veteran intelligence chief, as vice-president, and Ahmed Shafiq, formerly minister of aviation, as prime minister.
Neither ordinary people nor commentators were impressed by what looked like the shuffling of a familiar pack.
“The appointments show that the regime isn’t serious about real, meaningful reform,” Shadi Hamid of the Brookings Centre told al-Jazeera. “If you were serious about democracy, would you appoint the chief of intelligence as your vice-president?”
However, the army remains relatively popular – certainly more so than the interior ministry’s security and riot control units. Troops have been guarding main installations since police lost control of the streets, but they have failed to enforce the curfew and have often fraternised with protesters.
Mr Suleiman and Mr Tantawi are untouched by the taint of corruption and personal wealth, unlike many in power. Mr Suleiman (74) is seen as fiercely loyal to Mr Mubarak. In 1995, two years after taking over Egypt’s General Intelligence Service, he saved the president’s life during an assassination attempt in Ethiopia.
Analysts speculate that one possibility for the next step in Egypt is that the US, now calling for "an orderly transition" in response to the crisis, could try to persuade the generals that Mr Mubarak should step down and allow political reforms to begin. Chief of staff Sami Enan returned at the weekend from a visit to Washington, but diplomats said there was no sign senior military men in Cairo were yet preparing to ditch the president. – ( Guardianservice)