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Egyptian puppet Abla Fahita has come under fire by controversial blogger Ahmed Spider, who backed ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
The Egyptian government has questioned a phone company accused of using a puppet in its commercials to spread coded messages about a terrorist plot.
The Vodafone Egypt commercial shows talkative puppet Abla Fahita looking for her dead husband’s sim card, or a memory chip for cellphones, and chatting on the phone about a character named Mama Touta. She mentions using a dog to sniff out the card at a mall.
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A controversial blogger and youth activist, who goes by Ahmed Spider, filed a formal complaint with Egypt’s prosecutor general saying that “Mama Touta” is actually a reference to the Muslim Brotherhood, which the Egyptian government designated a terrorist organization last week.
The details of the conversations, Spider says, outline an upcoming bombing. He opposed the country’s uprising in 2011 and supports ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
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Fahita actually appeared on Egypt’s CBC network to deny the allegations, the Washington Post reported.
“I am a comedic character,” Fahita said over Skype.
KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images
The Egyptian public has reportedly laughed off the allegations, taking to Twitter with the hashtag ‘#FreeFahita.’ One of the ads featuring the puppet plays on YouTube.
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The allegations were forwarded to special terrorism prosecutors, who summoned Vodafone representatives to discuss the accusations.
The company said the allegations are irrational and that the commercials are intended to attract viewers to the product and explain how to reactivate Vodafone sim cards.
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“The advertisement carries no other meaning,” Vodafone said in a statement released to The Associated Press. “Any other interpretation other than that is mere imagination or personal opinion of some of the audience.”
The Economist reports that the public largely considered the whole situation ridiculous and that many have formed humorous online support groups for the doll.
Twitter users are voicing their support for the puppet under the hashtag “#FreeFahita.”
With News Wire Services
mwalsh@nydailynews.com
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