Short of cash
THERE is a new breed of bad guy in Egyptian soap operas. Gone are the pre-revolutionary pashas: the new villain is a cigar-puffing, flashily dressed businessman, who cosies up to corrupt bankers for sweetheart loans, spends lavishly and stamps on anybody who gets in his way. The public enjoys all this but the government, which is trying to put more of the economy into private hands, is uncomfortable.
This article appeared in the International section of the print edition under the headline “Short of cash”
From the September 2nd 2000 edition
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