NEW YORK: In his first speech to the country, the new president of Egypt promised ‘not to commit myself to what I cannot implement, hide the truth from the people, or be lenient with corruption and disorder.’
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| President Mubarak (second right) and first lady Suzanne with their two sons, Gamal (right) and Alaa (second left), and the latter's wife Heidi al-Sakher (far left) in the Ittihadeya Palace in Cairo |
That was Hosni Mubarak in 1981, taking the reins of his proud country in the wake of Anwar Sadat’s assassination and expressing a determination to steer Egypt in a new direction. During a crackdown on profiteering by politically-connected wealthy businessmen, Sadat’s half-brother and his sons were jailed and handed steep fines. Several dozen prominent members of Sadat’s circle were slapped with criminal charges for misusing their power and other corrupt practices. Mubarak was known for his ‘rigid personal probity,’ according to a 1990 New York Times profile, which noted that ‘his family has not profited from his office.’
But over the last 20 years, Mubarak, his family and his close circle of advisers have enriched themselves through partnerships in powerful Egyptian companies, profiting from their political power, according to numerous reports. The 82-year-old leader and his two sons also wield the levers of the government, including the military and the country’s preeminent political party, to reward friends and punish enemies.
Mubarak — who stepped down on Friday in the wake of massive protests that have gripped Cairo and Alexandria for weeks — and his family have a net worth of at least $5 billion, analysts tell The Huffington Post. Recent media reports pegging the family fortune at between $40 and $70 billion are considered to be exaggerated.
Much of their fortune has reportedly been invested in offshore bank accounts in Europe and in upscale real estate. On Friday, Switzerland froze accounts possibly belonging to Mubarak and his family, a spokesman told Reuters, under new laws governing ill-gotten gains. Last month, the Swiss froze the accounts of Mubarak’s ally, ousted Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, whose overthrow inspired the first protests in Cairo.
The Mubarak family reportedly owns properties around the world, from London and Paris to New York and Beverly Hills. In addition to homes in the Red Sea resort of Sharm al-Sheikh and the upscale Cairo district of Heliopolis, they also have a six-story mansion in the Knightsbridge section of London, a house near the Bois de Bologne in Paris and two yachts.
Largely through Mubarak’s two sons, Gamal and Alaa, the family controls a network of companies that earn money through concessions wrangled from foreign companies that do business in Egypt, according to prominent businessmen and ‘Corruption In Egypt: The Black Cloud Is Not Disappearing,’ an investig-ative report compiled in 2006 by a coalition of opposition groups.
The wealth of the Mubarak family and other elites stands out in a country where millions toil as low-wage laborers, high rates of inflation make it harder for those aspiring to a middle-class lifestyle and unemployment is a persistent problem — half of all Egyptian men don’t have a job and 90 percent of females remain jobless two years after graduating college, according to a recent Congressional Research Service report.
Source: Daily Sun (Bangladesh)
