Ah, Egypt!

The Suez Canal is still blocked. Check back in two weeks, or so.

It’s a good reminder that our First World economy is still very much reliant on the equally-corrupt, but less efficient practices of the Third World.

The Ever Given, however, remains stuck in the single-lane, older section of the canal. Egyptian officials were reluctant to give anything but an optimistic picture of efforts to refloat the ship, including a video released by the SCA set to dramatic music, intended to portray authorities as in control of the crisis. Initial statements from Admiral Osama Rabie, head of the SCA, that the problem would be solved within days, and other reports that the ship had been partially refloated or moved, proved untrue.

Capt Ranjan Chowdhury, who sailed the Suez canal frequently during his 35-year maritime career, said the canal pilots, mandated by the SCA to steer transiting ships and aid tricky navigation on the waterway, contributed to problems.

“The canal pilots play music inside the bridge, and there’s a lack of AIS-supported backup,” he said, in reference to the tracking system used on ships. “They connect to it with a computer, but the canal pilots are very over-confident when it comes to navigating by sight. Every time they’re eating food, smoking, talking a lot and asking for bribes which keeps them very busy. Navigation is an art, and if you lose concentration for a second while navigating a narrow channel, it should be investigated.”

“We call the Suez canal Marlboro country,” he added. “If we provide them with a big carton of Marlboro cigarettes they’re happy. Not every captain has done their homework before transiting through the Suez canal.”

Chowdhury was equally sceptical about efforts to examine the incident. “The investigation will not be transparent, and it will take a long time due to bureaucracy,” he said. “More importantly, the Suez Canal Authority doesn’t take responsibility, the ship’s captain is the primary individual responsible, which is a loophole compared to the Panama canal.”

Ain’t happening