As the cradle of civilisation and beacon of religion, Egypt deserves to be regarded as a symbol of strength and progress. The Egyptian people will never listen to anyone who deliberately distorts facts and makes false claims goal to undermine national development. They will never allow the unscrupulous from conspiring against the nation to take us back to the years of darkness.
It is only when a new national project opens that we are bombarded with behind-the-scenes allegations across social media platforms to discredit the project and cast doubt on its benefits. However, the public have become increasingly aware of these anti-government campaigns and refuse to be misled by these lies.
The latest (and certainly not the last) campaign came when President Abdel Fattah El Sisi inaugurated the Islamic Culture Centre in the New Administrative Capital on the eve of the first day of the holy month of Ramadan. The centre is a symbol of Islam’s embracing worship, science and knowledge.
The new Islamic Culture Centre has one of the world’s largest mosques with a capacity of 107,000 worshippers and minarets 140 metres high.
The Mosque has three international certificates from the Guinness World Records: the largest pulpit in the world with a height of 16.6 metre, handcrafted from the finest types of wood. The second and third were for the main chandelier, the heaviest in the world at 50 tons and the largest chandelier with a diametre of 22 metres and four tiers. The centre also has Dar el-Qur’an (Qur’an House), a public library and 160 shops for worshippers.
The start of this campaign came from the BBC channel, which is known for its anti-Egypt bias. While covering the opening of the centre, BBC made no comment about its magnificence, its real importance and what it would offer. Rather, the BBC had a pessimistic view of the project despite the fact that Egyptians feel hopeful about new developments in their country.
The centre aims to enhance the role of Egypt in serving Muslims in the Arab region and the Middle East by promoting the tenets of Islamic and the Arabic language as an extension of its role since the foundation of Al-Azhar.
The opening of the Islamic Culture Centre is part of the state’s vision of comprehensive development, which led to the launch of projects in all sectors. Were it not for these projects, Egypt’s economy would have never have been so resilient amid the global economic crisis.
Those who slammed the New Administrative Capital (NAC) demanded solutions to congestion in Cairo. Investors are competing for projects in the NAC with huge return.
The new Suez Canal was also discredited in the beginning, but now the waterway earns $8 billion annually and the target is to reach $12 billion a year. This is in addition to the several campaigns launched against the expansion in the energy and electricity and road projects as well as new cities, scoffing at the billions that pay for them.
Egypt deserves to be the best and, thankfully, the President has the determination and will to achieve the impossible.
Mohamed Fahmy is the editor-in-chief of The Egyptian Gazette and the Egyptian Mail newspapers
