Ball scratching and finger waggling, Morsi blunders on

Published March 30th, 2013 - 13:13 GMT

Life as an opposition politician wasn’t easy under ousted Egyptian dictator Hosni Mubarak. Airing your thoughts publicly was liable to get you a short stint in prison at the very least.

But taking on the role of ruling the country is a different kettle of fish altogether, as Muslim Brotherhood President Mohamed Morsi is finding out. With the world’s press following his every move, this ‘man of the people’ is struggling with the proper etiquette as he hobnobs with the great and the good. Continue reading below »

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Image 1 of 8: 1 / 8Never the most exciting of official events, the Arab League Summit can be a bit of a snoozefest for some. But President Morsi’s delegation took the term to new level, catching forty winks during the opening ceremony in Doha this month.

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Image 2 of 8: 2 / 8Sitting in an awkward pose can cause the most polite of men to go for a ‘re-adjustment’ but Morsi’s quick scratch in the presence of not only the Australian PM but the world’s press, left Egyptians red faced with embarrassment at their dear leader.

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Image 3 of 8: 3 / 8Giving opponents the finger must have seemed like a good idea at the time but Egyptians took to social media sites in their hoards to mock Morsi for his finger wagging speech. After all, this was the man who threatened to “cut off any finger” that meddled in his affairs.

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Image 4 of 8: 4 / 8As the universal language of politics, most Arabs expect their leaders to speak English with aplomb. So when President Morsi got muddled up comparing Planet of the Apes to Egypt’s political state, learned Egyptians everywhere hung their head in shame. Best to stick to your mother tongue Mr. President!

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Image 5 of 8: 5 / 8With a background in engineering and a PhD in ‘materials science’, Egyptians were expecting their leader to be a lab geek extraordinaire. But according to researcher, Yousef Zidan, the President messed up his science facts a good 7 times in his most recent speech in Pakistan.

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Image 6 of 8: 6 / 8Trying to blend in with the locals is always a tricky look to master. With his trip to nearby Pakistan on the agenda, Morsi opted to drop the suit and tie in favor of a traditional costume, leaving Egyptians cringing at their emperor’s new clothes.

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Image 7 of 8: 7 / 8The sharpest Muslim Brotherhood critic of them all, Bassem Youssef, is regularly compared to America’s Jon Stewart with his dry wit. Unable to laugh at himself, Morsi has tried to stir up the legal system against this satirist, only to find he is the butt of the joke.

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Image 8 of 8: 8 / 8Despite his nap at the Arab League, Morsi was able to stir himself for some public speeches in Qatar. Unfortunately, they made even less sense than his comments in English: “if the monkey died, what shall the monkey man do?”, he asked and the world stood bemused.

Enlarge

Never the most exciting of official events, the Arab League Summit can be a bit of a snoozefest for some. But President Morsi’s delegation took the term to new level, catching forty winks during the opening ceremony in Doha this month.

Image 1 of 8Never the most exciting of official events, the Arab League Summit can be a bit of a snoozefest for some. But President Morsi’s delegation took the term to new level, catching forty winks during the opening ceremony in Doha this month.

Sitting in an awkward pose can cause the most polite of men to go for a ‘re-adjustment’ but Morsi’s quick scratch in the presence of not only the Australian PM but the world’s press, left Egyptians red faced with embarrassment at their dear leader.

Image 2 of 8Sitting in an awkward pose can cause the most polite of men to go for a ‘re-adjustment’ but Morsi’s quick scratch in the presence of not only the Australian PM but the world’s press, left Egyptians red faced with embarrassment at their dear leader.

Giving opponents the finger must have seemed like a good idea at the time but Egyptians took to social media sites in their hoards to mock Morsi for his finger wagging speech. After all, this was the man who threatened to “cut off any finger” that meddled in his affairs.

Image 3 of 8Giving opponents the finger must have seemed like a good idea at the time but Egyptians took to social media sites in their hoards to mock Morsi for his finger wagging speech. After all, this was the man who threatened to “cut off any finger” that meddled in his affairs.

As the universal language of politics, most Arabs expect their leaders to speak English with aplomb. So when President Morsi got muddled up comparing Planet of the Apes to Egypt’s political state, learned Egyptians everywhere hung their head in shame. Best to stick to your mother tongue Mr. President!

Image 4 of 8As the universal language of politics, most Arabs expect their leaders to speak English with aplomb. So when President Morsi got muddled up comparing Planet of the Apes to Egypt’s political state, learned Egyptians everywhere hung their head in shame. Best to stick to your mother tongue Mr. President!

With a background in engineering and a PhD in ‘materials science’, Egyptians were expecting their leader to be a lab geek extraordinaire. But according to researcher, Yousef Zidan, the President messed up his science facts a good 7 times in his most recent speech in Pakistan.

Image 5 of 8With a background in engineering and a PhD in ‘materials science’, Egyptians were expecting their leader to be a lab geek extraordinaire. But according to researcher, Yousef Zidan, the President messed up his science facts a good 7 times in his most recent speech in Pakistan.

Trying to blend in with the locals is always a tricky look to master. With his trip to nearby Pakistan on the agenda, Morsi opted to drop the suit and tie in favor of a traditional costume, leaving Egyptians cringing at their emperor’s new clothes.

Image 6 of 8Trying to blend in with the locals is always a tricky look to master. With his trip to nearby Pakistan on the agenda, Morsi opted to drop the suit and tie in favor of a traditional costume, leaving Egyptians cringing at their emperor’s new clothes.

The sharpest Muslim Brotherhood critic of them all, Bassem Youssef, is regularly compared to America’s Jon Stewart with his dry wit. Unable to laugh at himself, Morsi has tried to stir up the legal system against this satirist, only to find he is the butt of the joke.

Image 7 of 8The sharpest Muslim Brotherhood critic of them all, Bassem Youssef, is regularly compared to America’s Jon Stewart with his dry wit. Unable to laugh at himself, Morsi has tried to stir up the legal system against this satirist, only to find he is the butt of the joke.

Despite his nap at the Arab League, Morsi was able to stir himself for some public speeches in Qatar. Unfortunately, they made even less sense than his comments in English: “if the monkey died, what shall the monkey man do?”, he asked and the world stood bemused.

Image 8 of 8Despite his nap at the Arab League, Morsi was able to stir himself for some public speeches in Qatar. Unfortunately, they made even less sense than his comments in English: “if the monkey died, what shall the monkey man do?”, he asked and the world stood bemused.

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From ball-scratching to finger waggling, Morsi has been blundering his way through official events both around Egypt and internationally. And the reaction within Egypt has been merciless, as these North Africans use their famous wit to take him down a peg or two.

No matter the serious political problems in Egypt, these social media hipsters would rather civil war than another Morsi public gaff. Here we take you through some of the President’s most embarrassing moments to cringe and sigh along with the rest of his countrymen.

What do you think about Morsi’s public embarrassments? Is it just petty mockery or do they say more about the man than might first appear? Share your thoughts with us below.