On the anniversary of the coup: This is the MB position; and this is our compass
Twelve bleak years have already passed for our beloved country, Egypt; years that have been marked by the accumulation of injustices affecting all Egyptians, most notably tens of thousands of martyrs, detainees, forcibly disappeared, and persecuted persons.
This is in addition to the economic failure that has left the country hostage to foreign debt, shackling its political will, threatening the independence of its national decision-making, and endangering its national security.
Meanwhile, the ruling regime stands helpless at times, and reckless at other times, showing firmness only in the face of its own people, as it is preoccupied only with remaining in power, regardless of the cost to the country's present and future.
Egypt’s need for change is no longer questioned: a comprehensive, peaceful change that will transform it from oppression and tyranny to freedom, tolerance, justice, and a dignified life; from debt and dependency to an independent national will and the possession of the resources and power necessary to defend the country; a change that will restore Egypt’s regional and cultural clout and reposition it in the status of leadership on the Arab and Islamic levels, after its image has been tarnished by the flagrant incompetence and shameful failure exposed by the war in Gaza and the crisis of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).
In fact, the coup anniversary is not an occasion to rekindle national and societal divisions, but rather an opportunity to remind all those loyal to their homeland that only the interests of the country and the people can unite our efforts, no matter how diverse our ideas and ideologies.
The past few years have been enough – for those who wish to learn a lesson – to realize that no single political force cannot survive by only itself on its own, and that betting on the exclusion of one or more parties is nothing but a short-sighted calculation whose effects quickly rebound on everyone, without exception.
There is no individual salvation, and there is no salvation for Egypt and its future without political and social forces and responsible elites who place the interests of the Egyptian people above everything else.
We have all paid, and continue to pay, a heavy price: both the legitimate, elected government and its opponents, political parties and youth movements, the 25 January forces and those who were deceived by the 30 June move, Islamists, liberals, and leftists.
This is in addition to the cost that the country is paying in terms of its national security, economy, image, and standing. What Egypt expects from its loyal sons is not a statement of apology or an admission of mistakes; rather, it requires immediate, serious, and concerted action to correct mistakes and to renounce any reliance on policies and choices that have reached a dead end.
As for those who insist on their failure, and who defend killing, detention, debt, and humiliation, that is their choice; and we will continue on the path of change without hesitation.
Twelve years after the coup, the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) renews its pledge to the Egyptian society, in all its spectrums and diversity, that their compass will remain the achievement of the comprehensive, peaceful change that Egypt awaits and that befits it. The Brotherhood will not fail to do so, despite the pain; and our hands will remain united with the hands of those who are sincere and serious in acting for this change.
Our compass in this regard is clear, untainted by any confusion or doubt, and also undiminished by anger. It is a safe and responsible change that preserves the country's security, rather than threatening it; strengthens its social fabric, rather than fragmenting it; and that safeguards all state institutions, which belong to the people, as a national achievement for successive generations of Egyptians and a symbol of their nation-state, built and defended by Egyptians for over two centuries.
The change that the MB believes Egypt and Egyptians are waiting for is manifested in the following determinants:
1) Establishment of justice, freedom, and social justice for the benefit of all citizens without discrimination or exclusion.
2) Protection of national independence requires a unified national fabric, establishment of a political system with genuine popular legitimacy, possession of advanced defense potentials, achievement of food and water security, and balancing external alliances to be based on cooperation, integration, and equality.
3) The need to review government spending priorities, prioritizing spending on education, health, rural development, and marginalized areas and neighborhoods.
4) Lifting regulatory restrictions on the private sector, supporting small businesses, and prioritization of national investment in developing advanced industrial and technological infrastructure as a necessary foundation for renaissance and development.
5) Support of the true and complete independence of all forms of civil society, including professional and labor unions, student unions, and various civil society organizations.
6) Lifting security restrictions imposed on political parties and all political activity.
7) Support of freedom of the press and media, as well as freedom of expression on social media.
Anyone contemplating Egypt’s current reality will clearly note that the suffocating security grip, no matter how comprehensive, will remain weaker than the strength of a large and diverse society like the Egyptian society – that will inevitably rebuild its organizational and institutional foundations, which will serve as the nucleus for exercising its right to change the country's troubled reality and seek a better future.
However endlessly expansive reality may seem, the future has always been, and will always remain, the property of the people, who remain the one unchanging truth.
Allah is the Greatest and to Allah all praises belong.
Dr. Salah Abdel Haq
Acting Muslim Brotherhood General Guide
(Thursday, 8 Muharram 1447 AH / 3 July 2025 AD)