Sheikh Sharif looks like he could run circles around those kids. Banooniga dheeliya

Good news, but as with everything 'we have funding for this' articles, I'll believe it when I see it.

Well done Hargaisa. Well played. Happy now JB?

What time is kick off?

Baashi, saxib thats bad news. Illahay ha sahlo your relative. The ban won't criminalise anyone. People will criminalise themselves. It will become illegal and the Somalis will know that. Also, as it's not banned at the moment in the UK, khat would most probably become a Class C drug which carries a warning and a criminal record in most cases. On top of that waa xaaraan anyway (something Ngonge conveniently side stepped).

Go Hawd!!!!!

His account is between him and his maker. We will never know.

Look at the SL map on the link. The regions are numbered. The list is on the left.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somaliland scroll down

Yalla Hawd!

Ha laakin kuwani sidey wax u xisaabiyeen google lagama heli karo

NGONGE;765366 wrote: What's stubborn in asking you to slow down and ensure what you're asking for is right, saaxib? Casa an takraho shay'an wahowa khayron lakom miyaanad maqal? How about better the devil you know? There is nothing stubborn about what I'm arguing here. If you want to ban Khat because you feel it is the responsible thing to do then you also have to be responsible in the way you go about doing it (in other words, don't leave a stone unturned before deciding it's the best option). Sayid, like I told him is looking at a different argument. If that's what you're after, then we don't need any petitions. All you have to do is gather all the jilted wives, heartbroken mothers and angry fathers. Take them to Heathrow airport on everyday that Khat gets delivered and let them give the suppliers hell. Heck, you can even park outside the houses of the big khat importers and shame them into going into hiding or something. There are too many ways to do this and none of them would involve a demand for a ban and the criminalisation of thousands of people. Lakin ma cid fakarysa baa jirta, waa 'get one good idea on facebook' and run with it without thinking of any consequences or problems that might arise from your 'good' idea. War naga daaya..dacar fooqal dacar. You’re beating a dead horse warya. Sheekado dhan waad la socota. There are no problems in countries where khat is illegal. They don’t have scores of chewers sitting in jail. If someone breaks the law then they are criminals. Big deal! Your stubbornness is in looking but failing to see! You’re either for a ban or against it (you have the full info). Naga daa ruwaayada. As for what Sayid suggested, that can be a good back up plan.

They are bringing taxes in. The problem recently has been taxing businesses crazy amounts with little basis. No information as to how they got those figures, no consultancy process and no feedback.

JB give us some insight into the mood there. Are the people asking these questions? Are they getting any response? There has been an issue over the past couple of weeks regarding lack of information on how tax is being applied towards companies. Have you heard anything on this?

^The stubborness goes both ways here saxib Sayid, good suggestion. Increase the duty on khat to a level that makes it difficult to overly consume the stuff. Mijintu in labaatan gini wax ka yar lagu iibsadoba maaha. This will gradually go up as inflation goes up giving the chance for Ngonge's 'uknown' consequences to gradually peeter out.

If you requested ample reasearch into say banning wireless internet in homes (due to unknown effects as its still quite new) I would agree with you. But the effects of khat are known to you and many others. That alone should be enough for a ban. Laakin hanging your hat on not knowing the consequences of a ban and demanding an essay (when you have all the good nations of Scandanavia and Canada as examples) is a tad melodramatic

Everyone is entitled to their opinions.

Should such questions be asked after 20 years of relative peace, stability, formation of a democracy and business activity? The internal workings of the SL govnt is being questioned by more and more of the SL people. It's a healthy discussion. People are asking for their rights (not recognition).

Ha saxib. Let me know what you find out. Will you be passing through DXB?

LOZ welcome back saxib.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/somaliaconflict/somaliaspeaks.html

Faheema.;765120 wrote: Norf, it doesn't seem to make any any difference...I keep getting the same q's over and over again lol. The driving isn't as bad as I thought initially...no doubt they are a lot of lunatics loose on the roads lol@Che will try that next time IA. NGONGE, I try so very hard lol Well your field of work means you will be working with many Arabs so it must be double the trouble. I would suggest you sign up for a course. Eton Institute at Knowledge Village is quite good. The driving isn't as bad as many people think when they arrive. You just drive faster. The worst culprits are reer Abu Dhabi and reer Sharjah. Just steer clear of them

There is still a long way to go Mr. President Mr. President, in comparison to your predecessors you have accomplished a lot in a very short period. To mention few of your administration’s accomplishments; you doubled the salaries of the civil servants. You gave school fees brake to the primary school kids. Your administration carried out a partial transformation of the justice system. The old Somalia currency circulation was ended in Togdheer region and replaced with Somaliland currency. A Somaliland TV is on the air and can be watched all over the world. A radio station that will serve the nation from Selal to Sanaag is on the works. Compared to your predecessors, these are compelling achievements; however, these are not enough, because our nation was aspiring to achieve even more under your leadership. From now on, we would prefer not to hear the past triumphs of your administration, but instead would like to know more about where we are strategically heading and what we need to achieve. We are looking forward to see tangible strategic efforts put into the recognition front. This difficult task must be given to the most experienced, politically insistent and articulate brains in Somaliland. The recognition front requires a collective management and not to be left in the hands of a single person. Somaliland overseas representatives must be carefully reselected on the basis of their merits, experience and communication skills. We need to hire a strong lobby firm in North America and find ways of improving the hard work of the Somaliland friends in the UK. We must wisely use the advice and influences of our friendly and neighbouring nations. We need to assertively form friendships in continental Europe, in Africa and in the Islamic world. We must seek ways of dealing with Somalia through intermediaries if necessary and start discussing the separation issue. We need to actively involve our citizens to promote the recognition of our sovereignty. The Somaliland private sector and Diaspora Somaliland communities could be asked to contribute to a transparent national sovereignty recognition fund. We are in dire need to find an ingenious ways of creating jobs for our unemployed youth. Your administration must double its efforts in finding investment for the Berbera port and corridor. We need to have a second look at the European community funded plan that was proposed to the Riyaale administration and was due to be contracted by Bollore Group, a French company. I was told by a Somaliland friend, who was involved with this project from inception that it can be reactivated as soon as it is approved by your administration. The exploitation of our natural resources must be encouraged and aggressively promoted. Tourism is another sector that needs a hard work. Exploiting the Somaliland Islands and turning them into tourism resorts is badly needed. These Islands are ‘forgotten land’ and Somaliland needs to fully exert its sovereignty on these Islands. Police and coast guards can be posted there for the time being. The Submarine optic fibre cable is another job-creating project that needs to be started as soon as possible, otherwise, Somalia will take it over and we will not only lose the opportunity of job creation, but will also irretrievably lose the independence of our telecommunications sectors. That is not all; the fibre optic cable will play a greater role in the improvement of our infrastructure, education, health and will enhance our chances of attracting foreign investors into our economy. Mr. President, your administration needs to publish the government budget and spending online. This will eliminate government corruption and promote the international standing of our country. The ranking system of our armed forces must take a priority and the transformation of our justice system must continue in earnest. All current unqualified and corrupt judges must be alternatively replaced with the top law graduates of our universities. The civil service is the backbone of our government and Somaliland needs a qualified and experienced people to lead this vital branch of our government. The top Somaliland civil service needs a complete overhaul. Director Generals, departmental directors and ministerial consultants must be re-evaluated and those who were selected through nepotism must be relieved from their posts. The auditor general and the anti-corruption commission are no where to be seen or heard, these two all important institutions must be fully reactivated and supported. Mr. President, your cabinet needs more coherence and discipline. Your ministers seem to lack energy and vision with the exception of few talented and patriotic ministers. The rest seem to be fulfilling clan agendas rather than national agendas or in some cases working hard in campaigns of self-promotion and future political bravado. They all seem to be freelancing and not working in tandem on a well planned and comprehensive national policy. This has to change as soon as possible. The right people must be expeditiously given the right portfolios and you must get rid of all the opportunistic and incompetent ones. They are not good for your administration’s legacy and not good for the nation. Mr. President, you do not have to act as a Kulmiye candidate any more, because you are now the president of Somaliland and you need not include people to your cabinet to balance out clan affiliations. You must also change the old habit of replacing a fired incompetent cabinet member with one from his own clan. At the end of the day, Somaliland will judge you for what your administration has achieved and not the number of bungling ministers you have selected from certain clans. Please terminate all the advisors and cabinet ministers who sing your praises, because they are misleading hypocrites and they all have hidden personal and/or clan agendas. The best advice can be sought freely from the most candid people who supported you unconditionally during your campaign as a candidate for the presidency. These are close to the people and are more prone to give you an honest picture. These people are kept away and deliberately prevented to come and see you. It is below par and sad to see unnecessary farewell and welcoming ceremonies thrown on your behalf before and after each trip you make in and out of the capital. This affair has escalated up to an embarrassing point. It makes no sense, it is expensive, and it brings both the private and the public business to a stand still. Scores of cars and buses are used for this purpose, which are not good for the safety of our people and are not environmentally friendly. Your cabinet of ministers and the Somaliland civil servants need to concentrate more on their official duties and not to be distracted by your trips. This extravaganza which is inherited from the former Somali Republic is again made into a national norm by the Somaliland political elite and must end and not be allowed to continue. Finally, we must not be carried away with our meager accomplishment, because there is a lot of hard work ahead, which can only be achieved with strong leadership and with the Full Corporation and a better communication with the Somaliland citizenry. There is still a long way to go before your administration could tap itself on the back. http://somalilandpress.com/op-edthere-is-still-a-long-way-to-go-mr-president-24761

Faheema.;765111 wrote: Filipino: Hello Mada'aam, would you like any help? Indian: What is good name (accompanied by head gesture side to side) Emirati: Where are you from Me: UK Emirati: No, originally Me: I am Somali Emirati: So you speak arabic Me: A little (shuweya) Emirati: Sarts speaking full on arabic Me: Confused look* Smile and nods Welcome to the gulf You need to tell the Emaratis from the off you're Somali but know only little Arabic. Then tell them you speak Somali at home and have lived in the UK. Hows the driving?

"Monkey bars for $120. I'm training the whole neighbourhood"