"The criticism was blunt" and startling, since it came from a TV presenter on a state-owned station that, like most other media in Egypt, usually has nothing but praise for Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, the country's general-turned-president.
Presenter Azza AlHenawy demanded Sisi take action after deaths from floods in areas north of Cairo last month that many blamed on neglect of infrastructure by authorities. She said corruption was being ignored and addressed the president, saying, "As long as no one is held accountable, you will be just talking and making promises and we will get no results … This is why the people are fed up."
AlHenawy was promptly suspended by the state broadcaster for "unprofessional conduct."
Her outspoken comments on November 1 pointed to the erosion of the aura of invincibility that Sisi has enjoyed. Sisi had seemed impervious to criticism ever since he, as military chief, led the 2013 ouster of Egypt's first freely elected president, the Islamist Mohamed Morsi, after nationwide protests against Morsi and the political domination of the Muslim Brotherhood. Sisi then stormed into the presidency with a 2014 landslide election victory.
For more than two years, he has been lauded as Egypt's savior. The media have praised his every move, telling the public that he is putting Egypt on the path of security and economic revival. He's had virtually no political opposition, since secular political parties have largely joined the cheerleading and a fierce crackdown has crushed the Brotherhood, killing hundreds of its protesting supporters and jailing thousands more.
Secular and pro-democracy activists who fueled the 2011 uprising against longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak were not spared, with dozens jailed, mostly for breaking a law effectively banning street protests.
But in recent weeks, Sisi seemed to struggle with expectations among a population that is fatigued by years of turmoil and has still seen little improvement in the economy, corruption or infrastructure.
Worries over the economy have been compounded by the crash of a Russian passenger plane in the Sinai Peninsula that killed all 224 on board.
The US and Britain believe it was downed by a bomb planted by the Sinai branch of the Islamic State group, which has been waging an insurgency against Sisi's government. Russia suspended flights to Egypt and on Friday took the further step of halting EgyptAir flights to Russia " all likely to have a devastating effect on tourism.
Sisi himself appears to have little tolerance for criticism.
"It's inappropriate! We are crossing all boundaries. It's inappropriate!" he said, visibly angry during an address on November 1 after a different TV presenter was critical of him for meeting with a senior Western businessman when the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria was inundated by rain.
"Are you punishing me for taking this job?" he said. The speech inspired widespread mockery on social media.
