I think I spoke about this before , may be on twitter anyhow I think the ministry of Culture and Cairo Governorate should do something about that ugly metal structure called “Ayman Taha Mall” beside the famous and Ancient Sultan Abu Ela Mosque in Boulaq Down town Cairo.
I took those photos in a taxi with my iPhone so I am sorry if they are not that great.
That building made of metal and glass is called the “Ayman Taha Mall” , some sort of a project by former MP Ayman Taha for street vendors in the famous Boulaq quarter. Needless to say for months that building is not working or operating , standing still beside the ancient mosque and destroying the scene which is already damaged by the popular market of Boulaq !!
Taha was a member of the NDP who used to represent labor seat in the parliament on behalf of Downtown Cairo area. You can see the ads showing NDP MP Taha calling the women to vaccinate their children freely with the NDP logo on the walls of Al Galaa hospital.
After the revolution he joined the Free Egyptians Party “ I doubt he knows the meaning of liberalism” and he won the parliamentary elections and represented the Labor seat of Downtown Cairo. After being a member in the industry committee, Taha resigned from the party. “I bet he is thinking of joining Freedom and Justice Party now”
I do not care about Taha and his project , I care about that old ancient mosque , it is enough the damage this bridge had to endure because of the bridges now it got that tasteless metal building besides it with the ugly posters of Taha all over it , enough is enough !!
Sultan Abu Ela was not a Sultan but rather a Sufi Sheikh from Arabia who came and lived in Egypt in order to be near from Prophet Mohamed’s family “Peace upon them” in Egypt. He was called a Sultan as the Sultan of Sufis. Despite the current building or mosque was built and decorated in time of Mamluks , the shrine itself exists since 9th century CE for God sake.
This mosque and its history is part of the real history of Cairo. For God sake
By the way I read in the newspapers late 2011 that this ugly mall thing is going to be removed by the municipals workers and that
You can read more about the Sultan Abu Ela mosque in those links :
- An excerpt from Baladi women of Cairo : Playing with an egg and a stone “Love that title so much, it really describes the women of Cairo perfectly”.
- Sultan Abu Ela Tale in Arabic
If I were governor of Cairo first thing I would do is drag away all the old cars that have not moved in one month and make them into scrap metal. Second I would drag all the broken lamposts and other metal objects and recycle the metal.Third I would pedestrianize many streets in Downtown and have no cars allowed like other cities. Every single building that has been built illegally would be pulled down no matter what excuses. This would force a lot of the people from the villages back to their villages and empty out Cairo a bit to let it breathe. If all they are doing is selling tissues then they can sell tissues in the villages. I'n sorry but if that seems brutal but it takes brutal measures to get Egypt back on its feet again. A few million people need to be relocated out of the city and the slums pulled down. Trains need to be utilized on the tracks we have to carry waste to the outside of Cairo for recycling this will create jobs outside Cairo and the trains can transport the sorted stuff to the factories for recycling. There has to be enforced laws about vehicles. EVERY vehicle should be roadworthy and adhere to strict conditions or else be scrapped and recycled. There are too many deathraps on the roads killing people. Fencing should be put round all historic buildings and all the out of work graduates doing nothing should be utilized to restore them for a small salary rather than sitting doing nothing earning nothing. Same with cleaning the trash. Employ the graduates to clean for a small salary because until every single Egyptian realises that it is not the president that works miracles and the people have to get off their butts and do things the country will be remain as it is. A chaotic mess. It's every citizens duty to fix the country and clean it and beautify it. It's also the Islamic thing to do.
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