Who will be Egypt’s president?
Image by Kodak Agfa
“And it came to pass that I, Mormon, did utterly refuse from this time forth to be a commander and a leader of this people, because of their wickedness and abomination.”
Mormon 3:11
Mormon, an ancient American military leader refused to lead the Nephites against the Lamanites when they became prideful and violent. Without Mormon to lead them, the Nephites steadily declined, until their eventual extinction around 421 A.D.
The story of Mormon resigning from political power and the eventual downfall of the Nephite nation shows the importance of having a righteous leader.
With the ousting of Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s in a similar situation to that of the ancient Nephite nation. The stability of their nation will depend on whom they elect president. If they elect and uphold a righteous leader, they’ll likely recover. If they elect a wicked leader, the Egyptian government may collapse into chaos, or evolve into a dictatorship.
Thus far, their are several candidates for president in Egypt.
8 Egyptian presidential candidates
- Abdel Moneim Aboul Fotouh (60)- Studied law and medicine. Worked as Secretary General of the Arab Medical Union. Arrested in 1981 with members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Served five years in jail.
- Khaled Ali (40)- Studied law. A lawyer and activist. Known for defending social rights of people. Detained in February 2011, during the protests. The former head of the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights .
- Mohammad Salim Al-Awa (70)- A well-known Egyptian scholar. Works as head of the Egyptian Association for Culture and Dialogue.
- Hisham Bastawisy (60)- An Egyptian judge and the vice president of the Egyptian Court of Cassation. Helped lead part of the Egyptian revolution. Associated with the National Progressive Unionist Party, that seeks to loosen the governments control over the media, and rejects religious extremism.
- Mohamed Morsy (60)- Studied engineering. Strongly involved in the Muslim Brotherhood. Freedom and Justice Party Chairman.
- Amr Moussa (75)- Studied law. Served Eygpt as Minister of Foreign Affairs for ten years, followed by serving ten years as the Secretary-General of the Arab League.
- Hamdeen Sabahi (57)- Studied mass communications. Worked as a politician and journalist. Leader of the Dignity party (Arab socialist advocates). Detained in 1981 for speaking against the government as a reporter.
- Ahmed Shafik (70)- Studied military sciences. Served as a senior commander in Egypt’s Air Force and appointed as the Prime Minister of Egypt during the 2011 protests. He resigned as Prime Minister only a few months after his appointment.
“In my country we go to prison first and then become President.”
-Nelson Mandela
Personal Notes: I know that a nation that trusts in and follows God, will be helped by God. I love Egyptians and hope they choose a president who’ll lead them righteously. I long for the day Egypt (and other countries in distress) will be in peace.