Egyptian activists set up ‘Sisi meter’ to monitor new leader’s performance

Publicly tracking the performance of Egypt’s highest official might have seemed unthinkable in the three-decade reign of former strongman President Hosni Mubarak.

But now, almost three-and-a-half years after Mubarak’s ouster in the January 25 revolution, activists have launched a website aimed at bringing incumbent President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi’s upcoming first term to account.

Called the “Sisi meter,” the website aims to monitor the former army chief’s fulfillment of his election promises, after provisional results last week indicated a landslide victory against his sole rival Hamdeen Sabahi.

However, this could prove difficult, as Sisi has not put a clear mandate forward.

Big problems

While the former army chief has acknowledged the scale of Egypt's problems, including an energy crisis and Islamist militant violence that has driven away foreign investors and tourists, he has refused to publish his policies.

The site’s founders said that the website accepts proposals and demands expected from the new president, which will then be put up for voting starting from the date he enters office, according to Cairo-based daily Egypt Independent.

The site is inspired by a previous initiative in 2012 – when Islamist President Mohammad Mursi became the first democratically elected leader in Egypt’s history – activists set up a Mursi-meter.

Although the website was published when Mursi’s popularity had not yet waned, one month into his presidency, the meter recorded that only one of 64 pledges made during his electoral campaign had so far been implemented.