Last Night’s Talk Shows on 29 December 2020
A quick and dirty rundown on talkshows for you wonderful people as we push past this mid-week hump and look forward to a very quiet New Year’s Eve:
The Order of Covid with Clouds, Banners, Crossed Swords and Diamonds goes to: Khaled Kassem, spokesperson for the Local Development Ministry, who found the energy to make the (telephonic) rounds of last night’s talk shows despite being home sick with the ‘rona. Highlights:
- Some 11.6k shops, malls and cafes have been fined after inspectors found them in violation of new winter-summer opening hours.
- Cairo, naturally enough, headed the list of “violators” with exactly 2,821 sanctions having been handed out.
- There was also some muttering about a forthcoming statement on “violations” and “shisha” in shuttered cafes, but we tuned out — we haven’t spent years getting off tobacco to imagine, once more, the sweet sting of shisha going down our windpipes…
Catch Kassem chatting with Lamees (watch: runtime: 7:35) or Al Hayah Al Youm’s Lobna Assal (watch, runtime: 7:58).
Don’t worry: If the bubble fails, our covid invincibility shield will do the trick: Egypt is ready for any emergency during the 2021 Mens’ Handball World Championship, Youth and Sports Minister Ashraf Sobhy told the gentleman who hosts Ala Mas’ouleety (watch, runtime: 12:20). Apparently the ministry isn’t listening to Lamees’ better half: As we noted yesterday, Amr Adib hit the nail on the head when he suggested the Men’s Handball World Championship 2021 should take place without spectators — NBA-style bubble system or not — when it is hosted in cities across Egypt from 13-31 January. (Then again, maybe we need not worry — who watches handball?)
Yo, Zamalek — you got your water back yet? Cairo Water Company chief Mostafa El-Shimi says so, telling Ala Mas'ouleety's Ahmed Moussa that a key water line damaged during the Metro buildout has been fixed (watch, runtime: 4:09).