I used to go to seminars held by one
of the most important research centres in Beirut and find the same participants’
list since those seminars started… and whenever one goes to political parties’
seminars used to be held in Tripoli or Baghdad, he meets the same faces whom he
used to see and they in turn used to see him… and still when you go to conferences
held by Arab nationalists, islamists or Marxists, you find the same thing…
nothing changed… one can say it looks like some people became experienced in doing
the same thing again and again… but ironically, nothing new is produced…
The same thing applies to some aspects
in our cultural life in Egypt, especially in the ministry of culture and associations
and councils affiliated to it… as if it’s a cards’ game… where cards are shuffled
every time but they are still the same… moreover, this phenomenon is not to end
or dwindle like all sociological phenomena… because this phenomenon of “being experienced
in producing nothing new” is actually producing new generations who carry the
same genes… and who can master the arts of the game… game of flattering and cajoling.
I remember when I once volunteered to conduct
a seminar after a high profile journalist in the syndicate of journalism earnestly
asked me to… as they feared it may turn into a heated and intense discussion
unless someone can run it effectively… The discussion centered on the area of Bab
el-Azab in the citadel, how to develop it and maybe establishing a hotel
there.
When I arrived at the seminar, I found
the hall almost full with faces flaming and sleeves rolled-up… I sat at the platform
along with archeology professors, both pro and against the idea… I set debate
rules for everyone to follow… that is; I wouldn’t interrupt anyone… I wouldn’t set
time limit… provided that obscene words and long speeches are avoided… also, no
one shall repeat what has already been said.
The discussion was heated indeed… with
most important and heated comments given by my colleague, who later became a
dear friend, late Bahira Mokhtar.
Then a man standing at the last row of
the hall asked to speak… and then he started to flatter Farouk Hosni;
then-minister of culture… afterwards, the man talked directly to me saying: “I
know you won’t like what I will say… but I here assure that no culture minister
had done what Farouk Hosni did for Egypt… not July 23 revolution… or Tharwat
Okasha… or any other one… it’s enough for me that we were not jailed in his
time like the case when Okasha was minister of culture…”… Humming started in
the hall… however, the man continued his slurred speech…
I later knew that a dispute over the editor-in-chief
job position of a newspaper issued by the ministry was going… Late Ragaa
an-Naqqash and friend Talaat esh-Shayeb were nominated to this position until
this man got it… the man who believes that Tharwat Okasha was incomparable by
all means to Farouk Hosni… the man held this position even after the minister
was dismissed and others followed after him.
I’m not about to assess any ministers
of culture here… whether efficient and creative or just a mere government
employee… also, I will not act like a wise man giving advice to the current
minister… however, I’m trying to draw your attention to this phenomenon of
“being experienced in producing nothing”… that phenomenon already spread in the
administrative and supervising frameworks in the realm of culture… the field I
believe shall lead the way in the coming era of our nations’ history like it
was before in past times.
I believe anyone interested in the
public affairs, especially the culture arena, know how top positions in the
ministry bodies are won… however, the current minster has a unique character composition
since he is a known academic… famous writer… and expert in the administrative relations
governing the ministry since he was a top senior of its staff for a long time
before he became a minister… also, he has some students working in some of the
ministry’s associations… because of all this, I believe he can manage the game
and cut the cards well… paying attention to those waiting and ready to attack…
I have endless stories to tell in this
regard… as I saw many promising talented young men, including journalists whom I
know very well, who couldn’t find a way to get hired in the ministry or
journalism’s associations until they finally could master the game of flattering…
Now those, worried of the conflict between renaissance project and tardiness,
wonder… can the first project be established by this bunch of people who
masters the game of flattering?
Shall supervising public positions in
the ministry, supposed to lead the national renaissance project, be limited to
the employees chosen by the minister?... to the extent that there was time when
most of those occupying these positions were delegated from Arabic language
departments and some foreign language departments at Ain Shams university while
there were very few delegated from other places.
There were people who chose not to work
in government institutions… and maybe it’s not fair that they impose their own
assessment criteria over others who chose a different path and enrolled in
government positions… however, it’s also fair that the whole nation be freed of
this phenomenon so that the ministry of culture can do its role… but in the
same time allowing other forces in the nation to effectively participate in the
renaissance and renovation project.
Battles are not limited to generals
and military men alone… the cultural battle is even more decisive and important
that it cannot be left only to ministers and senior officials… it’s an act of
delivering a message in the first place… and one can never find a messenger
adopting this mentality of producing nothing new while mastering the arts of flattering
game.
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
Translated into English by: Dalia Elnaggar
This article
was published in Al Ahram newspaper on August 28, 2014.
To see the
original article, go to:
#alahram
#ahmed_elgammal #ministry_of_culture #Egypt
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