Egyptians have finally realized what they want

Even if the number of Egyptian expats who participated in the presidential elections this year is less than the number of those who participated in the 2012 elections, what’s certain is that this year’s elections are more credible and more representative of a different situation. Indications, however, say that the number of expats participating this year will exceed all previous elections.

In the 2012 elections, confusion and uncertainty reigned. There were also attempts to alter the people’s will by exploiting the act of voting via mail. The Brotherhood tried to exploit that by developing a style they’ve already adopted inside Egypt - the style of buying votes by distributing food to the poor. The Brotherhood thus altered this style and adopted it with poor Egyptian expats. A famous report published in a Kuwaiti daily at the time said that the Brotherhood in Kuwait bought expats’ votes for 50 dinars.

Regardless of whether this is exaggerated or not, photos of Egyptian expats lined up in front of embassies and consulates show that the Egyptians have overcome this and have succeeded at eliminating opportunists. It’s also been revealed that the Egyptians have become capable of expressing their free will towards developing their country’s future, just like they did before on June 30, July 3 and July 26.

They’ve thus proven that they can still act and have also confirmed their desire to establish the basis of a new state. Egyptian expat voters waited in long queues in front of embassies in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and foreign capitals. What also confirms this turnout is some Egyptian communities’ call to extend the balloting for expats for two more days. The balloting was actually extended for one day.

Egyptians have learned the lesson

This is further proof that the Egyptians have learned the lesson and that they’ve realized that they must begin with developing their country’s future. This is a call on all Egyptians to participate in the elections. Expat voters’ turnout seems like an indication of what will happen inside Egypt on May 26 and May 27 - it’s an indication that there will be a high voter turnout and an insistence to participate in the elections and defy the Brotherhood, their threats, their protests, their explosions and their desire to destabilize the country. It’s also a confirmation that the Egyptian people aim to resume implementing the roadmap and freely elect a president who represents all the Egyptians and their orientations and who’s not captive of one political orientation that aims to hijack the country.

The Egyptians have finally realized what they want, and we will see this as they queue up to elect a president next week.

This article was first published in al-Masry al-Youm on May 18, 2014.

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Abdel Latif el-Menawy is an author, columnist and multimedia journalist who has covered conflicts around the world. He is the author of “Tahrir: the last 18 days of Mubarak,” a book he wrote as an eyewitness to events during the 18 days before the stepping down of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Menawy’s most recent public position was head of Egypt’s News Center. He is a member of the National Union of Journalists in the United Kingdom, and the Egyptian Journalists Syndicate. He can be found on Twitter @ALMenawy