#Trending: Egyptians take up Sisi's offer to 'step down'

#Trending: Egyptians take up Sisi's offer to 'step down'
A promise by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi not to remain in office against the will of the people has been gleefully taken up by the Egyptian twitterati.
2 min read
27 Apr, 2017
Sisi said he would step down if he lost next year's presidential elections [Getty]
A promise by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi not to remain in office against the will of the people has been gleefully taken up by Egyptians who flooded social media in response.

In a conference on Tuesday, Sisi said he would step down if he lost next year's presidential elections.

"I could never allow myself or accept for myself, or for you all, that I stay in this position against your will," he said.

Shortly after his remarks however, a myriad of Egyptians took to social media to hold the president to his offer with the Arabic hashtag #We_don't_want_Sisi quickly gaining traction on Twitter.

While some described the president as "laughing stock", others urged him to "return to your barracks".

One user tweeted: "Sisi has sworn to God three times not to remain in his position another second if Egyptians do not want him [...] Step down you failure! You made us a laughingstock to the world #We_don't_want_Sisi."

Another said: "#We_don't_want_Sisi Enough failures, enough with detaining our boys, enough with selling the land, enough with the military rule, enough with the bloodshed, enough with humiliation and submission. We want an elected civilian president."

Others pointed out how quickly the hashtag gained traction on Twitter following Sisi's pledge.

"Can you imagine Sisi said he will step down if people do not want him...! And then the people respond with the hashtag #We_don't_want_Sisi, which trended in seconds! Just how loved are you Sisi?" one user tweeted.

"I go to sleep and wake up to see the hashtag #We_don't_want_Sisi still trending. Guys, it's very offensive, he might get upset and actually leave."