Essam Heggy, an Egyptian space scientist and scientific adviser to a former president, said the current regime is more occupied with its world image than it is with its people, and that the 2018 presidential elections are an opportunity for a course correction. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Heggy said the governing regime has driven Egypt to its worst moment in history, as the top priority in Egypt is not education but arms deals. Heggy expressed his view that the government has not learned from the experiences of Syria, Iraq or Sudan.

He said that unless education reform and other reforms take place, "There will be no democracy in Egypt. The people are trapped between two choices: the caliphate state of the Islamic State [IS] and the Muslim Brotherhood on the one hand, and the state of late Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser on the other,” Heggy said. He said that the revolution Egypt truly needs is one in education, as democracy without education is a path toward illusion.

Heggy has advocated the idea of a "presidential team” as an alternate to the current system.

The text of the interview follows: