40 royal palaces or homes to bats… Does Egypt need new presidential palaces?
Noon Post
Randa Attia — Egyptian Academician
“It has been said that I have built presidential palaces. Yes, I did. And I am building and will still build more and more. Nothing is registered under my name but all under the name of Egypt. I am building palaces in the administrative capital, by which the world will be amazed. Do you think that Egypt does not worth that?” Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi intentionally or unintentionally brought down the most controversial issue in Egypt in the past two weeks.
Out of denial, El-Sisi certainly confirmed the validity of the leaks by the artist Mohamed Ali, who is the owner of Amlak Contracting Company, the main partner of the Egyptian army for the past 15 years, and who has revealed the President’s wasting of public funds by building presidential palaces and lounges worth hundreds of millions while more than half of the population are still living below the poverty line.
The president’s determination with an arrogant tone to the issue of building more palaces that are worth billions has provoked resentment among a large segment of Egyptians who believe that the phase-in all its details does not need such measures which are aimed at promoting an unrealistic image of the situation in the country. Nonetheless, the question that is most frequently raised: “Does Egypt really need to build new palaces?”
5 Presidential Palaces
“Egypt has five presidential palaces, most of which are classified as the largest among the presidential palaces in the world,” commented the academician Amjad Kamel, a specialist in modern Egyptian history, pointing that some of these palaces have remained for many years ago the subject of modern international design headquarters.
Kamel added to Noon Post that a palace like the Heliopolis Palace, or as it is called “Uruba Palace,” which is located in the center of the capital Cairo and is currently the presidential palace, contains 400 rooms in addition to 55 private apartments and huge halls. The palace has been built by two construction companies that were the largest in Egypt at that time, namely Leon Rolin & Co. and Padova, Dentamaro & Ferro.
The rooms of the palace, which was designed by the famous Belgian architect Ernest Jaspar, have been furnished with the most luxurious types of antiquities, more specifically the styles of Louis XIV and Louis XV. As for the large central hall, it has been previously furnished with huge crystal chandeliers that were the largest at that time, emulating the Eastern style.
Abdeen Palace comes secondly as an exceptional historical masterpiece. The palace embodies one of Egypt’s most important historical stages, as it remained the presidential palace from 1872 to 1952. It has been built in 1863, and its name refers back to Abdeen Bey, one of the military leaders under the reign of Muhammad Ali Pasha (Muhammad Ali of Egypt). Abdeen Bey had a small palace in the location of the current place, which Ismail bought from his widow, demolished it, annexed it with wide lands and then started to build this palace, which has been the destination of many, who are interested in both Egyptian and Islamic archaeology.
The Egyptian academician explained that the market value of this palace in the eighties reached nearly 120 million Egyptian pounds, while it now exceeds tens of billions of dollars thanks to its strategic location, large area, and priceless collectibles and antiques.
Ras El Tin Palace, which overlooks the Mediterranean shore in Alexandria, is one of the historical and archaeological sites in al-Mahrousah. It is the only palace that witnessed the rise of Muhammad Ali Pasha’s family in Egypt and their rule that lasted for nearly 150 years. The palace was a documentary record of their rule’s most prominent stages.
in the center of Cairo, Koubbeh Palace, Egypt’s largest palace in terms of area, has been built by the Khedive Isma’il Pasha, and turned into one of the three major presidential palaces after the revolution of July 23, 1952, along with Abdeen Palace and Ras El Tin Palace. Koubbeh Palace was where prominent visitors were hosted during the rule of the late President Jamal Abdel Nasser.
30 royal palaces inhabited by bats
Egypt’s treasury of palaces is not limited to the presidential palaces. There are more than 35 royal palaces, dating back to different political eras. They largely represent a living testimony to the most important historical stages in modern Egypt and constitute a heritage that can promote a brighter image about the country.
It seems that the desire to attribute glories and achievements to oneself is the closest scenario to justify el-Sisi’s desire to build new palaces
Archaeological researcher Ahmed Abdel Jawad pointed out that the architectural style of such palaces would restore the mental image of Egypt abroad, because of their unprecedented architectural and structural capabilities among most palaces of the world, including the current presidential palaces that Egypt is proud of.
A Palace like the Mohammed Ali’s Palace, built-in 1808 on an area of 50 acres, is one of the greatest architectural artifacts in the whole world, added Abdel Jawad in an interview with Noon Post, pointing out that if there is a genuine will, this palace would be an alternative to the current presidential palace, Heliopolis Palace.
This is in addition to other palaces, such as Manasterly Palace, Baron Empain Palace, Palace Ablaq, Amir Taz Palace, Beshtak Palace, Alexan Pasha Palace, Prince Youssef Kamal Palace, Sarofim Pasha Palace, Princess Aziza Fahmy’s Palace, El Salamlek Palace, El-Hakaneia Palace, Princess Shivakiar’s Palace and the Said Halim Pasha Palace (also known as Champollion House), as well as other palaces that can host all the governments of the world at same time, as for Abdel Jawad’s words.
In his conclusion, the archaeology researcher wondered: “If there is a genuine intention to support Egypt through palaces, then why not pay enough attention and take care of the existing royal palaces?”. He added that, restoring and renovating these palaces will not cost as much as building a new one, such as the palace established in the new city of el-Alamein or the new administrative capital in the center of Cairo, worth tens of billions of pounds according to semi-official figures.
It seems that the desire to attribute glories and achievements to oneself is the closest scenario to justify el-Sisi’s desire to build new palaces, to which he implied when declaring during the last conference: “You mean you only want the palaces of Muhammad Ali inside Egypt”. Analysts identified this as a psychiatric condition controlling the man who is suffering from paranoia and narcissism.
Wasting public money
On May 20, 2011, a pro-regime journalist, Dandrawy Elhawary, wrote an article published via the website of the pro-Sisi newspaper, Youm7, in which he revealed the extent to which building new presidential palaces is clearly wasting public money. He pointed out that “Mubarak lived in one single palace, the Heliopolis Palace, and left the rest to become homes to bats and mice. “
Elhawary revealed that instead of “taking a decision to make the best use of these palaces and highly contribute to advancing development, the presidency of the bygone era entrusted the control agencies of the Ministry of Agriculture, represented by the Plant Protection Institute at the Agricultural Research Center, with the plan for reptile control. Especially at the Abdeen Palace, the centerpiece of Egyptian palace, being the government’s official headquarters for 80 years, between 1872 and 1952. “
The pro-Sisi writer considered such palaces having no analogue in Europe and America as a priceless national wealth, suggesting they should be optimized, referring to an article written by the deceased journalist Mustafa Amin in 1982 “in which he proposed selling one of the presidential palaces deployed all over Egypt, in order to pay off Egypt’s debts.”
He said that in case anyone rejected selling, these palaces shall be converted into special tourist sites, opening their doors to foreigners and Egyptians, or to important hotel resorts located inside the center of Cairo under the management of the Ministry of Tourism, just like the ones in Britain that provide millions of pounds to the government.
The deputy editor of the website, known for his support for el-Sisi, concluded his previous article calling for a full-scale investigation in wasting public money, through neglecting these palaces and leaving them for animals and bats. He said that “it is strange how these presidential palaces and rest areas were off supervisory bodies, including the most important one, the parliament and the Central Auditing Agency. This wasted wealth remained out of the concerns and thoughts of all followers, either for fear of provoking this proscribed file, or for not being considered as a priority for political forces.”
Ridiculous contradiction
While the Egyptian president is bragging about building a new state having luxurious palaces, which he believes should be worthy of the name, position and history of the Egyptian state, the situation on the ground is even more painful. While some people are applauding and encouraging the man’s insistence on building palaces, there are over 30 million Egyptians below the poverty line, according to the official figures released by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics last July.
The agency revealed that poverty rates in the country amounted to 32.5% of the population by the end of the fiscal year 2017–2018, compared to 27.8% in 2015–2016. Thus, poverty has grown wider during the period the Egyptian government has set for economic reforms. The number is likely to double in the coming years, with some arguing that the real poverty rate exceeds 60% of the total population.
Additionally, more than 2.26 million Egyptians are suffering from unemployment, according to official figures, although the number is much bigger. Besides, thousands went homeless during the past few years due to the closure of more than 5,000 factories, and over 40 million other citizens had to live in slums lacking the basic necessities of a decent life.
The strangest thing about this satirical comedy is that the largest proportion of the cost of building these palaces was paid through external loans, which is more painful for many. Far away from posing any questions related to the way such an amount would have better been used to serve the most important sectors, such as education, health and human development, one shall wonder how would a country, having 106 billion dollars in foreign debt, consider building new palaces in addition to the countless existing ones just for the sake of uniqueness and self-luxury?
