Domestic columnists are offering boilerplate coverage of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s weekend speech on the economy alongside eulogies for Ahmed Zewail and the IMF loan. Oh, and surprising nobody: They don’t like the notion of “selling” citizenship to investors. Told you, folks. Beer. Snowmen. Salafis. Western Desert…

Ziad Bahaa El Din offers standard fare on the IMF loan in Al Shorouk, noting that while Egypt may have no choice but to seek the funding, it should consider four steps as part of its economic reform programme: Determining the state’s role in the national economy, reconsider taxation, reevaluate state spending priorities, and ensure there’s parliamentary oversight of international financial agreements.

The Al Masry Al Youm columnist who writes under the pseudonym Newton tackles The Economist’s recent savaging of Egypt. While he usually holds The Economist in high regard,he says the pieces ignore including political turmoil in Sinai, the nation’s resort to the IMF, and President Abdel Fattah El Sisi announcing difficult economic reforms. He says that, just as Europe did after the Second World War, Egypt can handle the tough times and muddle through.

Al Nour is still around, and it’s not down with the IMF: “If they lend us everything in the coffers of int’l organisations, it would be swallowed by corruption,” said Younes Makhioun, leader of the Al-Nour Party who posted his take concerning the IMF loan on his Facebook page. “A government that led us to this crisis and failed to manage the majority of [critical] files is not one that can effectively manage this loan,” and goes on to doubt that “[it would] benefit the average, struggling Egyptian.” Makhioun says taking on the loan contradicts the “correct” teachings of Islam, and is considered usury.

Amr El Shobaky’s says the recent talk of granting Egyptian citizenship in exchange for a “bank deposit” is deeply “insulting,” in Al Masry Al Youm. He says it disregards how the process is done anywhere else in the world. Clearly, Mr. El Shobaky’s isn’t an Enterprise reader, or he’d know better.

Meanwhile, Salah Montaser writes for Al Ahram that the recent attempt to assassinate former Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa’s life is backlash against a military operation that killed the head of Daesh in Sinai Province Abu Duaa Al Ansari, along with at least 45 other jihadists in a “preemptive strike” on Daesh ammunition depots in Sinai. Al Kahera Wel Nas’ and El Watan’s Osama Kamal criticized British Ambassador John Casson’s congratulating Gomaa for surviving the attack, contrasting them with the UK Home Office’s announcement of guidance for conditions under which Ikhwan leaders can be granted asylum, as we reported yesterday. Kamal stresses he doesn’t oppose the UK, but believes granting Ikhwan members asylum, despite the clear conditionality, is poor policy.