Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

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Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by Hafiz »

Alex governor. Got rid of.

There were signs of change – well not – just false starts under Morsi.

Take this case. The Alex Governor used makeshift offices to house them since protesters had burnt the official governorate headquarters to the ground during the 2011 revolution the new Governor was happy with that and not spending millions on a new ‘peoples palace’

He unwisely said the following:

“Alex is so different than Cairo; it’s still a melting pot,” says ElMessiry (the governor), who sits, long legs crossed, sipping tea in a gilded chair. He recalls growing up in an Alexandria populated by Jews, Greeks and Italians as well as his fellow Egyptians. “It was very different then,” he says—and not just because it was more diverse. “There were none of these violating skyscrapers—everything was two or three stories’

“We’re trying to do things a little differently.” For example, ElMessiry has adopted what he calls a “proactive approach” to stemming the recent demolition of Alexandria’s historic buildings to make way for high-rise apartment blocks. (See “Growing Pains” p. 32) “The problem is you’ve got someone who talks theory—‘we’ve got to preserve it.’ Ok, that’s great, but the owner died 1,000 years ago and sold it to a contractor who doesn’t know what heritage is and needs to get a 12-storey building in there in order to make millions,” he says. “For how long can you protect it? Eventually, they’ll find a way to destroy it—legally.”

Upon moving into the governor’s office back in February, he was surprised to discover that the facility had neither a high-speed Internet connection nor working telephones. Nearly all the governorate’s public records had been destroyed in the fire. “There’s no data!”

For his part, ElMessiry thinks Egyptians need to stop treating authority figures like “pharaohs.” He makes a point when he can of walking on the streets or taking the tram, where people often stop him to say hello, or complain about the traffic or the trash problem and offer unsolicited advice. ElMessiry says he does his best to listen. “Just don’t ask me for an apartment or a job,” he says, flashing a dimpled smile.

“He’s not the traditional model: the guy who just wants the prestige and doesn’t do anything and wants the people to come to him,” says Mahmoud. “This guy—he goes to the people.” http://www.amcham.org.eg/publications/b ... kes-public

It all came to an end and he resigned/was really fired after a short time following the Alex floods for which he was not responsible and which he had tried to get others to avoid – no matter the ones responsible are still in their jobs and they are all military and the problems go back decades and will take decades to fix – if they are ever fixed.
http://egyptianstreets.com/2015/10/27/e ... -flooding/

He was the first civilian governor appointed since 2011. In office less than a year. Appointed by Morsi. An international business executive with a good education and not anything other than a western liberal.

He used to jog and cycle in Alex and wasn’t obese. The other Governors all on life support or anti-Alzheimer's drugs don't like that:

Image

Some in Cairo saw his glamour and popularity as a threat to the residents of the Imperial bat cave. How could you threaten the brain dead?

A Professor of Economics, educated in the US and Egypt, ran manufacturing and finance firms, deep sympathy for ordinary and poor Egyptians. Talented, energetic and bright. No wiff of corruption. My god if there is no wiff of corruption about you, you are not part of the club and people might start to expect honest politicians - shock, horror.

He was replaced by a police officer.

Foolishness is in the water, and some backed his removal because even the generally not unhinged Zeinobia got angry with the floods/deaths whilst understanding that he had little to do with them – but like many intellectuals in Egypt she understood little about government and the division of responsibility – no power. Should have thought about it better. https://egyptianchronicles.blogspot.com ... s.html?m=0

Still confirms in the minds of all – appoint a young(ish) civilian and what do you get – floods and death – better to have elderly generals with double incontinence.

The sewerage system which failed is part of the national ministry of housing and even al Ahram is brave enough to publish that it is derelict and corrupt specifically in relation to contracts that led to the deadly floods. No news on prosecutions or resignations here. http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent ... wage-.aspx and claims that there had been no infrastructure developments in alex in 15 years.

He also tried to tackle garbage https://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/blog/ ... age-crisis

After the crisis was well over and the governor cleared out and replaced by a cop the president visited distributed a billion or two and directed the army to fix the whole sewerage system in 10 days everyone believed it. http://egyptianstreets.com/2015/11/08/e ... ge-crisis/ even Egyptian streets swallows it.

Later 23 died in floods in Beheria no one resigned. They had a military governor and when was a general ever responsible for failure? http://egyptianstreets.com/2015/11/08/2 ... tial-rain/ The Military governors of Sinai have presided over 8 years of accelerating terrorism and hundreds dead but have never been fired and always supported in their disasters.

The hate for the governor was building well before the floods. Security entities were calling up civil society workers to “discourage” them from meeting with the governor,” wrote Amro in the column on Mada Masr. A local resident told Egyptian Streets that Elmessiry was dealing with corrupt local officials and ‘gangs’. “When he came [to office] he started targeting illegally constructed buildings and exposed those behind many failings. But they didn’t want him to succeed. When he removed the garbage from the streets, they made sure it came back, just to get him out of power.” http://egyptianstreets.com/2015/10/26/i ... ly-floods/

Seemingly a good man tossed out. Why would good people put themselves forward in the future rather than just get out and do well in the US. People liked the tossed one would, over time, have made the other 18 double incontinentees look useless and where would that lead.

If you are going to stay around keep a low profile, attribute all successes to Sisi and take the blame for all failure. Developing dementia can only help.


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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by Winged Isis »

Nailed it.

He was a dead man walking the moment he got into that job. Far too good to survive in modern Egypt. Not accepting, encouraging and facilitating talent is Egypt's greatest tragedy.

Alex has so little of it's historical buildings left, and those are still fast disappearing.
Carpe diem! :le:
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by Major Thom »

Sounds like a bloody good Governor to me, modern and forward in thinking and had Charisma, something lacking in the authorities.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by carrie »

Is he the same man who was the Gov of Quena does anyone know?
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by A-Four »

carrie wrote:Is he the same man who was the Gov of Quena does anyone know?
Yes you are correct Carrie, this is the same person.

I know you are old school like me Carrie, I remember going to Quenna long before this man arrived, the place was a complete s*** hole, sorry Carrie but truly that was how you would see it. You certainly saw the change, but further more how Luxor could have been all those years ago.

I know you have been there several times in the past, believe me, years ago the market Street that runs parallel to Station Street in Quenna had rats bigger than large cats.

Is it still the same that you and I know how wonderful that town is/was.

I am coming to Egypt during the Winter season for the very last time, so am hoping you say it's still the same.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by carrie »

More or less the same except for the escalators over the railway line. Been there for quite a while now ( at least a couple of years) but still not working. The Nile side walk is beautiful a nice place to visit and I have no idea why more people don't go there.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by newcastle »

carrie wrote:Is he the same man who was the Gov of Quena does anyone know?
No he's not.

One of his predecessors as governor of Alex, General Adel Labib, became governor of Qena some years previously.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by A-Four »

carrie wrote:More or less the same except for the escalators over the railway line. Been there for quite a while now ( at least a couple of years) but still not working. The Nile side walk is beautiful a nice place to visit and I have no idea why more people don't go there.
Yer know that block of quite modern flats along the Nile in Quenna, a couple of Europeans lived there, they moved from Luxor and remained there until they returned to the U. K.. They only left because, they became too old to remain there. Actually I honestly believe with knowledge I now have, they truly would have been cared for more by there old friends in Quenna than in the U.K.

I do honestly believe that those who lived in Luxor in the past would have had a better life in Quenna than ever possible in Luxor. As a rule most items in the 1990's were 50% cheaper than in Luxor.

P.S. - next time you are in Quinna Carrie, ask anyone where ' the ' man was sent to after Quenna.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by carrie »

Yes that name does ring a bell Newcastle. Just as a matter of interest how many Generals does Egypt have in the army, seems everyone was one once. Max of 351 in the USA 81 in British Army can't find out how many in Egyptian.
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Re: Alex Governor - Don't be Too Popular.

Post by newcastle »

carrie wrote:Yes that name does ring a bell Newcastle. Just as a matter of interest how many Generals does Egypt have in the army, seems everyone was one once. Max of 351 in the USA 81 in British Army can't find out how many in Egyptian.
Prob one for Hafiz :lol:

But remember General is also a top police rank in Egypt as well as military. The ex- Alex guy Labib was a police general.
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