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The death of a fifth person from swine flu shed light on the negligence in hospitals, proving that they are not ready to deal with H1N1 in case of an outbreak. The minister of education talked for the first time about measures to be taken should schools close down as a result of an uncontrolled spread of the virus. These included an amendment to the present assessment system for students.

The editorial of the official daily Al-Ahram said the basic danger from the first wave of swine flu was that it emerged unexpectedly as a mutation from other viruses, which is why scientists are concerned that the virus will undergo further more dangerous changes.

If the quick spread of the virus led the World Health Organisation to raise the degree of alertness to level 6 and the declaration of a state of emergency in the US, what worries the entire world most is the possible mutation of the virus to another form that will need time before we come up with the suitable vaccine.

Although the first wave of the virus infected thousands of people, it was controllable due to its weakness and the availability of the required vaccine. But given that the second wave of swine flu is on the threshold due to the advent of winter, we should tighten measures taken to control its spread.

"We successfully controlled the spread of the first wave. But we need to develop our plan to face the second wave that could be harsher due to the cold weather and the return of pilgrims from the hajj," the editorial added.

The resignation of Minister of Transportation Mohamed Mansour in the wake of the Ayyat train collision prompted reaction from those who regarded it as a positive step and those who said it was not enough.

Tarek Abbas described the resignation as a surprise that rarely happens. He wrote in the independent daily Al-Masry Al-Yom : "It seemed as though we were about to hear the same silly scenarios we get after similar accidents: it was the mistake of a simple worker or an insane person or any scapegoat that might calm public opinion. In Ayyat, the blame was initially placed on a buffalo that accidentally passed in front of the train. But later Mansour surprised us by his unexpected resignation after he apologised for the accident and declared himself personally responsible."

The resignation was a relief, Abbas wrote, a healthy phenomenon at a time full of mistakes. Whatever the motives behind the minister's resignation -- voluntary or compulsory -- it reflected a new approach towards a different management to crises and a warning to those who think they are immune from punishment. It's true that Mansour's resignation will not resolve the problem of railway accidents, but it may be the only consolation for the families of the dead and injured and those who constantly suffer in these dilapidated third-class trains.

"The resignation of Mansour and the head of the railway institution was honourable. It means giving up their positions to those who are more capable of doing the job. So, will [Prime Minister Ahmed] Nazif's government realise one day the honour of resigning?" Abbas summed up.

Said Abdel-Khaleq seized the opportunity of Mansour's resignation to question the criteria for choosing ministers. He wrote that in Egypt, positions have no specifications. As a result, we see positions tailored for family members, close friends or partners in private work and we see ministers who have no qualifications for the job. In short, he added, there is a big gap between the post and those who occupy it.

The writer called on the NDP conference which raises the slogan "For you" to declare its criteria for selecting ministers to the people who pay their salaries, and who alone bear the consequences of the disasters caused by unqualified ministers.

"It is not in anybody's interest to refrain from choosing ministers according to specified criteria or that the people do not know why a certain minister was selected or why he left the government," Abdel-Khaleq concluded in the daily Al-Wafd, the mouthpiece of the opposition Wafd Party.

The annual conference of the ruling National Democratic Party which concluded Monday occupied the front pages of official as well as opposition newspapers. Mohamed El-Zorqani wrote in the official weekly Akhbar Al-Yom that the prime focus of the conference this year was the citizen because if he knows where his daily bread is coming from and is in control of his life, then everything in life will be sound. In order to translate its slogan into action, the conference gave priority to issues of human, economic and social development, unemployment, motherhood and childhood.

In issues related to women, the conference used the term "enabling women" which means giving them the chance in economic and social fields, the writer explained. However, El-Zorqani hoped that the conference would include "enabling youth" as one of its motives which implies providing youths with more job opportunities.

Alaa El-Ghatrifi wrote that the ruling party chose the slogan "For you" because it has various meanings. Party members thought it a good slogan because it indicates they are exerting every effort to assure the citizen's contentment, whereas to most Egyptians, it indicates a series of mistakes committed during the last three decades and endless catastrophes and crises.

El-Ghatrifi added in Al-Masry Al-Yom that the NDP regards the Egyptian as the weak, cocooned person engaged in eking out a living and reluctant to show any opposition to government policies. In an attempt to remind the public of the government's performance, the writer listed what the party did for the sake of citizens: it sunk the Al-Salam 98 ferry which took the lives of more than 1,000 passengers; closed spinning and weaving cotton factories to pave the way for signing the QIZ with Israel; relieved the public from choosing parliament members by rigging elections; watered vegetables and fruits with sewerage water; and chose a government of businessmen who are not in touch with the man on the street. El-Ghatrifi said he mentioned just a few examples of what the government did for the sake of the citizen. More could not fit in one article.