Can a Nose Job Cost You Your Day Job?

Who knew you could lose your job because of a little plastic surgery?

A member of Egypt’s parliament learned that lesson the hard way this week when he was forced to resign his position after getting a nose job —and lying about it.

According to the Egyptian media, lawmaker Anwar al-Balkimy checked himself into a hospital on February 28th of this year for a nose job or rhinoplasty. The problem: he’s part of an Islamist political party, Al-Nour, whose members follow a strict interpretation of Islam that specifically prohibits cosmetic surgery (they see it as interfering with God’s work). Knowing that his party wouldn’t approve of the surgery, al-Balkimy proceeded to check into a second hospital on the day following his surgery, claiming that he had been beaten and mugged.

Unfortunately for him, al-Balkimy was found out; now, not only is he losing his position in parliament and his party, but he’s also facing potential jail time over the false police report he filed about the mugging.

It’s hard to imagine all this happening here in the U.S., of course, but let’s face it—as much as public opinion has changed over the years about plastic surgery, and even though the stakes aren’t nearly as high for most, many people still don’t like to admit it when they’ve had work done. Every individual has the right to decide for themselves how much they want to share about the procedures they undergo, though, and I think that most people understand if someone chooses to fib a little to protect their privacy.

Luckily for those people who do keep their plastic surgery under wraps, as long as they don’t lie to the police about it, seems pretty unlikely that they’ll get in trouble—or fired—for it!