Dhagax-Tuur is right , they will never be persecuted. Western capitals and cities not only attract , but encourage looted foreign capital in to their markets, especially housing market. The west coast Canadian city of Vancouver is becoming the most expensive place to live. Local residents are unable to buy houses due to Chinese money. A three bed room condo is selling $2million or more. Wealthy Chinese who either stealing money or avoiding government market regulation are parking their money in the real state. Students with Zero income or retires who declared less than $30,000 in their tax return are buying these houses. Even the Chinese premier who visited Canada this month was asking Canada to sign an extradition treaty to get back the looters. London is probably the premier city for looted money whether it is from Africa, Russia or the gulf. This is seriaes. What you need is to appoint an asset recovery lawyer to investigate all Soomaali leaders, from C/qasim, Rayaale, Siilaanyo and family, and the prime ministers who took the job for the last 12 years.

I agree, Mr. Seed should have read the writing on the wall. Insiders say , the change in headship was apparent many months ago. I do not know when the parties will learn. Party politics is a messy business , but central committees are easy to create and control. Any way, the election will be postponed six more months or even a full year. Siilaanyo has to bow down to the donors and both house and presidency must be held at the same time. Also, the dysfunction of UCID must be resolved. At the same time , if the ruling party tries to take advantage of the Wadani problems and pushes the issues to court, that may take a time to resolve. In any case expect delayed election. That will make the Kulmiye rule eight years or two terms. They just keep postponing the inevitable defeat.

Nasir, I do not know if you are aware, but bitcoin was in trouble few years ago. Like half billion coins disappeared. Zaad service is good and fast , but--there is always a but---our governments and towns could not make any tax revenue from these transactions. Also, it fuels wars, because of the unanimous way of sending money. It is the favorite tools of Al-shbaab. I do not know much about these things. Any way keeping working and let us talk after few years. good luck.

Few months ago in these pages, I did warn C/raxman Cirro, the chairman of the Wadani party in Somaliland , not to mess up the selection of the vice presidential candidate in his party. While most of the blame should go to the so called Awdalites---who have nothing else to do other than run for vice president--- the way chairman Cirro handled this issue showed incompetence and disorganization. I had an extensive discussion to one of the brothers of the vice presidential candidates who hails from the diaspora. He pointed out some important points. First, Mr. Ahmed M. Seed, was one of the founders and the longest serving vice president for five years in the Wadani party, and he was one of the toughest opponents of the ruling Kulmiye party during those years. He was not known as a sectarian or tribal person within the Awdalites, in fact when Suldaan Wabar went to the mountains to challenge Siiialaanyo and company, he did not attack or bad mouth the Suldaan. He blamed the actions and policies of the Siilaanyo government to be the main reason of the armed insurgency. Despite his hard work and long tenure in the party Mr. Muumin Seed was unable to attract prominent members of his community to the party. He was unable to add any heavy weights in the central committee of the party. Mohamed Cali who is less prominent than Seed , added around eight members in the central committee with less than a year. In fact , C/raxman Dahir Aadan--- a charismatic young man who joined the party about four years ago, and subsequently become the chairman of the Minnesota state branch---added more members and media attention to the party. When Chairman Cirro and his delegation were welcomed in America and Canada, they were welcomed like rock stars both in Ottawa and Minneapolis, thanks to the work of A/raxman Daahir. Having said that, if you look the three Awdalites running for the position, Mr. mohamed Cali seem to be the weakest person in terms of toughness and internal political dynamics of the region. May be Mr. Cirro was looking "Caano Madaadshe", just like vice president Rayaalle was selected by then president Cigaal to be just like that. While that is probably my biased view, some people who know both Cirro and Mohaned Cali say that the men have been friends for forty years since their school years and also served together as diplomats. In the end it could be that Mr. Cirro chose his old friend over Muumin Seed. They may be right because, the conventional wisdom says that the president should feel comfortable with the personality of his deputy. Mr. Muumin seed's weakness to attract members were also due to the typical campaign of the Kuimiye party to put wedges between politicians and their communities. People who were close family allies of Muumin Seed were appointed ministers, governors, directors and other prominent positions in the government in order to side line Mr. Seed. His own Suldaan is reported to be one of the close allies of the Siilaanyo palace. These and many other issues forced the party to look another alternative which emboldened the other Awdalites who were vying for the post. Before the the party convention was postponed, Mr. Seed had a meeting with party operatives to discuss the coming competition. According to this gentleman , who was in Hargeisa in that period, Mr. Seed was told explicitly that in order to energize the party and bring new members, the party operatives, hiding behind Mr. Cirro, told him to give up the vice president position and in exchange , he will be one of the most powerful ministers should the party wins the next election, and his sub clan community will hold it's position in the party. With the presence of some prominent elders from Awdal in the meeting , they both accepted the new formula. Mr. Seed did not like the idea of vacating his long held position, but accepted with presence of elders and party operatives. If that is the case, then what changed?. Well, that is where businessman Mohamed Aw said comes to play. Known by most people as Ina Aw Said , this Djibouti based businessman is one of the most successful business people in the region. His Somcable LTD. , subsidiary of Somcable SAS was awarded an exclusive 25 year license to deploy fiber optic cable between Djibouti and Somaliland. In 2009, when Dahir Rayaale refused to award the license, he created a campaign to not only defeat him in the next election, but started a campaign of chaos and blood letting. His allies in the Kulmiye party , started the Ceel Bardaale case which eventually led to the murder of the travelers between Dilla-Borama road. Suddenly , the whole Hargeisa west community rebelled and fought against Rayaale administration. Finally Rayaale changed his mind and allowed his deal over the others submitted by other competitors. Some People may think that Mr. Aw Said is motivated by tribal loyalty to his sub clan and that could be the main reason he is financing the election of Muuse Biixi, but the truth his, most business people are motivated by more important clan which is the green clan--the Money. For him the most crucial thing for his business is to preserve and keep the fiber optic cable monopoly throughout Somaliland. He does not want any other telecom company or competition in this market. In order to keep this monoply, he will do any thing regardless of the consequences. He believes that by funding and controlling Kulmiye, and eventually taking power through Muuse Biixi , will keep his cable monopoly for many years to come. He started that strategy last year by deploying Faysal Waraabe to sideline Gamaal Cali Huseen by destroying the UCID party which could have taken some vote away from Ina Biixi. After finishing off UCID, now he embarked the next stage of his campaign. Early this year Omantel, the Sultanate’s leading provider of integrated telecommunication services, has joined in a consortium with several East African telecommunications providers to lay the Gulf to Africa (G2A) undersea fiber-optic cable, which is set to revolutionize connectivity from Oman to East Africa. A consortium of companies from the region joined in hand to bring the cable through Somaliland. A local group based in Hargeisa joined the partnership and got the necessary licenses to operate in Somaliland. The Somaliland ministry of post and telecommunications approved the first agreements of the deal and proceeded ahead to implement. Ina Aw said of SomCable, immediately cried foul in order to preserve his 25 year monopoly. The citizens who were members of the partnership pushed against the Siilaanyo governments reluctance to fully implement the deployment of the cable from Oman, saying " are we not Somaliland citizens trying to make a living in this business?" Since he had no any legitimate reason to refuse, he gave the impression of allowing the business venture to proceed. Since there were no objections, the minister of telecommunications arranged the Omanis to come to Hargeisa and sign the final deal, while a technical expert group landed in Berbera and proceeded to the coastal regions of Awdal and Saaxil. On the day of the signing, a hastily written letter came from the presidents office and demanded that the deal to be scrubbed. Having went though all the legal hurdles and with knowledge of the government throughout the process, minister Mohamed J. Abgaal, could not comprehend the reason to stop the deal in the eleventh hour , and as expected, signed the deal. The next day in April 29, 2016, Mr, Siilaanyo fired the minister and the man who escorted the telecom workers to the coastal region, Admiral Mohamed H. Hiirane. Here is the press release: " president Ahmed Mahmud Silanyo relieved from duties the Somaliland coast guard commander admiral Mohamed Hussein Hirane and the post and Telecommunication minister Mohamed Jama Abgal with immediate effect from 29th April 2016". "According to the Somaliland presidency the two senior public officials were ordered to hand over to the deputies with immediately as per the statement which did not named replacements The Somaliland head of state justified the removal of the two officers from duties due to ignorance of mandate given to them to serve the Somaliland public. Since a change of government is in the works , Mr. Aw said is panicking. Two or more cable, phone and internet companies are good for the market and the people. A healthy business environment is where competition is allowed among companies. When there is competition, the public wins. We are all familiar with the contract killings in Mogadishu where certain business interests eliminate their rivals by blowing them up or shooting and then blaming the crime to the evil Al-shabaab. Thank God Somaliland did not reach that stage at the moment, but if you allow a greedy businessman to meddle the political system in a way that not only undermines the process , but creates animosity among the communities, bad things could happen. This oligarch must not be allowed to control the market just for himself. While Mr. Cirro has showed calm and due diligence throughout the years, I am not sure if he is tough enough to enforce the law and stand up to the vocal interest groups and oligarchs. Mr. Aw Said did not expect Wadani to replace UCID and become a force to be reckoned. He has been watching the growth of Wadani, especially after the an influential wing of the Kulmiye party , including Hirsi H. Hassan, joined Wadani. Now, he is trying to undermine Wadani by using disgruntled members and sawing disagreements among Awdal communities. Thousands of Dollars are spent to organize opposition groups who may have a bone to pick against Wadani. Unfortunately, that campaign is not working. Many members of Muumin Seed Community would like to resolve the problem and reconcile with the party. On Thursday night, about 18 elders of that community had met to resolve the issue. When the word got out about that meeting , the police showed up and arrested some of those who organized the meeting. It is the typical Kulmiye, pitting communities against one another in order to gain vote. According to reliable sources, Mr. Aw said gave Mr. Seed the $50,000 deposit needed for the vice presidential election, and convinced him to change his mind about abandoning the race. As we speak, the Wadani negotiating team met Mr. Seed and promised to give back his deposit and another fifty for compensation while holding his vice chair seat. The incompetence of Wadani was their failure to write the agreements reached with Mr. Seed earlier and put in a signed document. You can not operate as oral society while discussing crucial issues pertaining about the future of the party. Also, the fact that Mr. Muumin Seed being one of the oldest members of the party , this issue should have been handled earlier with dignity and grace. Any way, it is the interest of the Awdal community to bring both Mohamed Cali And Ahmed Seed to the party, because if these two communities coordinate no one can defeat them.

I could be wrong. C/weli too was probably helped by Damujadiid to defeat C/raxman Faroole. The power now rests with small group of Islaax clerics working quietly for forty years in business and Dacwa to gain power. They are " The Sheekh family". They do not have the support of the people and without Amisom, the insurgents would probably take over villa Somalia, By the way , as you said the Ethiopian army is in danger, because the conscripts are mostly Oromo and Ahmara while the officers are TPLF. The war with Eriteria in 2000, where tens of thousands of soldiers died, forced the TPLf to recruit poor Oromo's and others. Also, for the large Oromo under class, the army was the stepping stone for employment. Officially the Ethiopia army is around 200, 000 soldiers., who knows how many are Oromo?.

Malister, this community must stand down and transfer the power peacefully without delay. It is not healthy for democracy for one single group to rule in three different terms .

This president supposed to replace the foreign troops in Mogadishu and surrounding region, yet he did the unthinkable by increasing their presence. in central Somalia. This faction of Islaax have fragmented Somalia through the leadership of Small influential group financed by the gulf.

The Mudug brothers need peace and harmony. This war was engineered ( waxa laga soo staadhay) from Villa Somalia. Hassan Sheekh single handily picked the leaders of Galmudug, South West, and Hiiraan/Shabeelle , while the Kenyans installed Ahmed Maoobe of Jubba land. That means Puntland is the only administration that was selected by their own people. These Mudug communities ( Puntland and Galmudug) should make a united front and defeat the Al-shabaab and other anarchists together. The Galmudug administration should concentrate to clean the internal groups in Galmudug denying their legitimacy and leadership. There is Ehlu Sunnah Wal Jameeca -a non state anarchist militia claiming to represent central Somalia while occupying Dhuusamareeb and other places. Al-shabaab is not only active , but took over couple of villages for the last few weeks. By most accounts, the Galmudug region is growing in terms of business and trade . What is missing is law and order. Still, both the Cadaado , Caabudwaaq and Dhuusamareeb communities hold their arms and men separately. While Senator Cabdi Qaybdiid openly transferred his arms and militia to the new Galmudug leadership, all other communities have their own militia. Mr. C/kariim guuleed, the Damujadiid stooge should try to be independent and find peace with his neighbors and reject the schemes from Damujadiid. So, Mr.Guuleed has a lot fish to fry than worry about Puntland, he must bring other anarchists in the region under his control. Rather than spend their energy to fight their brothers in Gallakacayo and force thousands of citizens to flee this useless conflict, they must work hard to build their nascent state and bring law and order in central Somalia. The Puntlanders also must sit down with their brethren in MUdug and work out solutions without the useless guarantees of Ethiopia or Villa Somalia. Why would a Somali leader want to spread instability in the peaceful regions of the country?. Few months ago hundreds of Al-shabaab landed in Puntland and Mudug in order to take hold in the cities and coastal area. Fortunately , they were defeated and the unnecessary help of Amisom was not needed. I did mention last month the intentions of Hassan Sheekh to bring Amisom to Puntalnd and other places. For him, since he can not control these regions, he rather give the control to Amisom and others. He want to destroy the idea of some Somalis running their affairs without the presence of foreign army. Well, thanks to Hassan Sheekh, by 2017, South Central Somalia is totally occupied by Amisom.

Last week I did mention how fluid is the situation about the prospect of the candidates running for president . By now , those who have any political weight have already declared their intentions and the list of possible winners is shrinking. This was the list of credible heavy weights last week: Hassan Sheekh Mohamuud Shariif Sheekh Ahmed Cumar Abdirashid Sharmaarke. C/weli Sheekh Ahmed Mohamed Adbilahi Farmaajo Abdirahman Mohamed Faroole Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame Faadumo Dayib As we speak , the chances of many players have already diminished. He might be making a lot of noises in the media, but C/raxman Faroole is no longer among those expected to make the final list. As I said before in this pages, Mr.Faroole is not liked by most Somalis and especially those in the southern part of the country consider him as a " Red Neck". I have no intention of explaining what that means in the Somali political arena, but let us just say that he could be considered as someone who is more than eager to advance the interest of his kin more than the others. Also, the latest news from Garowe indicate that C/raxman Foroole is trying to take a seat from the higher chamber (Senate). That is a logical path for him and those who may only spoil the chances of others. When Cumar C. Sharmaarke declared his intentions , I knew Faroole had conceded and stood down for the prime minister. A well versed senior from Puntland told me that all politicians from that region including C/weli agreed to back the prime minister. There are also rumors that say the Puntland president might be a Damujadiid closet who favors Hassan Sheekh to win the seat. In 2012, C/weli Gaas and many other opposition members backed Hassan Sheekh against president Shariif Ahmed which in turn helped Hassan to get power. That vote from Gaas's backers was a conditional which guaranteed him for a prime minister. Actually , Mr. Gaas was not the only politician betrayed by president Hassan Sheekh. Conventional wisdom says that if Hassan wins re-election , his would be prime minister will be Mr. C/weli Gaas himself. In the light of these reports, we should revise the list one more time. President Hassan Sheekh Mohamuud Prime minister Cumar C. Sharmaarke President Sheekh Sharrif Sh. Ahmed Mohamed C. Farmaajo A/rahman C/shakur Warsame As I said in the first part, being the most qualifies or the best candidate for the future of Somalia does not guarantee one to be president. I really do believe a guy like Mahamuud Nur Tarsan could be a good president and able leader who could fix some of the security problems of the country. He is the only candidate that addresses the issue of corruption and nepotism in the state bureaucracy and security. He was raised by the Somali state ( in orphanage) and has no tribal loyalty or allegiance, other than the Somali state and people. I wish him well. Having said that , it is very difficult for Tarsan to overtake two presidents from Mogadishu like him. No one can ignore that President Hassan Sheekh has created a lot of distrust among the Somali public on the direction of the country. His actions or inaction has created a weak country flooded by foreign intelligence and NGO's coupled with criminal oligarchs. He does not want to tackle the issues that strengthen the state and the nation. Everyone is talking about the booming business of Mogadishu and all the high rise buildings that cover the landscape. Crime, contact killing and daily extremist insurgency are all cohabiting in the nations capital. That kind of environment or state should not be taken as normal or progress. In the early eighties and nineties , there were countries in Latin America undermined by drug dealers and local insurgents. Assassinations, drug killings and crime became the daily life of those countries. They were not failed states but functioning countries with quasi normal businesses opportunities for those who are involved in these crimes, but in the real world they were called " Narco States". Presidents and local politicians were assassinated, police were used as a death squads and rich business oligarchs controlled the state and the military. I the same parallel in Mogadishu, where business is booming for the oligarchs and those connected politicians , coupled with corrupt gulf money laundered through politicians. Security contractors, NGO's and business oligarchs are all awash with money intended to alleviate poverty. With all that evil added with the killing machine of Al-shabaab , the Somalia that will be emerging from these chaos will be worse than the narco states of of Latin America. If we continue this path, chaos and dirty business money and insurgency will co exist , and the average Somali would have no say of the process of the elections or who should be running the government. Former president Shariif Ahmed and the future. He was the moderate voices of the Islamic court of Mogadishu in 2006. He was president in one of the difficult times of Somalia. For the first time in 15 years, the IC were able to pacify a city that lost law and order after the collapse of the Somali state. Unfortunately they appeared at the scene once a transitional government was selected in Nairobi, Kenya. They were a mix of Wahabi clerics who were hungry for power and small time religious courts formed by locals to fight back against bandits, thieves and warlords during early 2000. In an interview with a New York times reporter, dispatched from Mogadishu in late nineties , showed the future conflicts between Islamic groups led by Aweys and other politicians. In that interview, Aweys openly criticized democratic system of western governments and their advocates in Somalia as unIslamic. In that same interview , former president Cali Mahdi, said " we the politicians and the so called Islamic groups are both seeking to gain the power, they ( Aweys and company) want to you use Islam as a vehicle and we want to get there through elections". I did not even check that quote, it is still in my memory. Those Somalis who were trying to avoid a conflict between the Islamic courts and the legitimate transitional government , wanted to find some kind of resolutions. On one had, you have a group who were able to pacify the nations capital after many years of chaos, but lacked the legitimacy of a recognized government, while the transitional government was the legitimate and recognized entity of Somalia. Those of us who were concerned with the conflict thought that these two entities could compliment each other if they compromise about those issues. A friend who was involved in the Islamic movements said at the time that " if these Islamic Courts make a compromise at this juncture of the Somali political history, they will save their gains and would run the country within ten years. Rather than find common ground with the government, the IC were agitating for conflict and war. They did not realize by removing the Somali government from the scene, the IC will be directly facing the Ethiopian government who were trying to meddle the Somali state. A well known Somali philosopher Dr. Cumar Raabe said , "The actions of the Islamic groups brought foreign intervention to Somalia( Jabhaduhu Dawladii Soomaaliyeed ayey rideen, dagaal oogayaashuna qarankii ayey qaawiyeen oo baabi'iyeen, Wadaadaduna ( Kooxaha Dinta U ehel sheeganaya), shisheeye ayey ku soo hogaamiyeen" ) . As long as there was a Somali government, there were no chance of IC and Ethiopia facing each other inside the country. The unsophisticated and arrogant Islamic courts eventually ended up in the trap set up by Ethiopia. When the first skirmishes started in Baidoa and Hiiraan, I told some of those emotional IC backers that they will be defeated in weeks not months. Defeating warlords and local tribal militia is totally different than engaging organized states. The rest is history. Former president Shariif Ahmed was one the leader who could not control or lead these groups when it was necessary to control. He was a weak leader who could not make the real decisions. He signed the same deal he refused in 2006, three years later after many thousand have died. He and the IC were accusing the government by aligning themselves with Ethiopia, but it was their actions that forced the government to seek help, yet after he became president, he flew to Ethiopia and accepted their help. He was the man who brought Amisom and others in the country. When C/laahi Yusuf was president, Villa-Somalia was guarded by Somali troops, but Shariif Ahmed replaced them with Ugandan troops. He seemed to know his enemies well since they were his former comrades, but was unable to make any peace deals with them. The main reason he replaced the A/laahi Yusuf government was to empower him in order to bring most of the local insurgency under his control, yet , as soon as he was sworn, the insurgency increased and strengthened. He fought against Al-shabaab well during his term and were very proactive in his efforts to pacify the capital. Unlike president Hassan Sheekh, his administration looked like Somalia. His cheif of staff was from Galdogob, his spokesman was from Sool , his intelligence chief was from Galmudug and so on. It is one of the advantages of being in the Islamic movements who usually operate non tribal environment. I would take Shariif Ahmed any day verses Hassan Sheekh, and I will support him if he wins the election, but I do not believe he should be the president of Somalia in 2016. There are many reasons , and the main ones are: 1-The Islamic movements must stand down. There is no doubt the Islamic movements have the biggest advantages of any Somali organizations could dream of. They lack the tribal cancer . While the Somali saying of " religious men do not leave behind their tribe( Fiqi Tolkii kama jano tego) is still true in our country, the Islamic movements has the least of these tribal cancers. The only problem is they have replaced the tribal cancer with another uncompromising zeal of Wahabi doctrine that is more deadly than the tribe. In tribal societies , there is always someone to talk to resolve these issues. While Conflicts do happen , they always have conclusions or end game. In 1993, Claahi Yusuf and Mohamed F. Caydiid, (ahn both of them) signed a peace deal in Gaalkacayo, which lasted more than 20 years. In Somaliland it was the tribal agreement of 1993 in Borama that brought the peace. The SNM boys would tell you that the Burco conference of 1991 was the foundation of the Somaliland, but the truth is that conference brought nothing but wars and conflicts that raged for the next few years. Peace came when Ibrahim Cigaal, a democrat and man respected by his tribe sat down with other tribes and formulated a system that brought people together. Shariif Ahmed might be a moderate cleric but, in the eyes of the Wahabis groups, he is not genuine enough. What I mean is : the time has come for Somalis to dislodge our self from these doctrine and the so called movements from our political landscape. There are two types of movements in these parts of the world: one is Wahabi , fueled by petrol dollars , specifically tailor made for the Saudi feudal monarchy. This sect is a perfect solution for closed and controlled monarchies of gulf, where open societies are threat to the feudal order . Where ever this sect is introduced chaos and mayhem follows. It is the deadly ideology of the Al-shabaab insurgents. The other one is the Muslim brotherhood which is forward looking , but needs organizational and modern skills to thrive. The argument is that they both are foreign elements. In Turkey , they have Islamic oriented parties and government , but they follow their own Islamic traditions, local customs and modern Turkey centered system. You may cal what ever you like, but it is a forward looking , modern and nation building movement that is reviving peacefully it's long history and traditions through democracy and development. Just as you can not copy as a whole the western system of government in to the Somali way of life, you can not import sectarian Islamic movements based either in Saudi Arabia or Egypt. Also, we are not sophisticated enough to incorporate all these competing systems to the independent Somali nomadic life. I conclude by saying that , in order to prosper and live in peace, let us go back to our traditional main stream Islamic ways of moderation, mercy and tolerance . We need the typical Somali Muslim , fulfilling his prayers, understanding our tradition and combining the modern way of governance. So, Shariif Ahmed would never have been at the center of Somali politics without being the vehicle of the Wahabis who were trying to gain power. 2- He could not defeat or bring the extremists to the table. Two days ago mortar shells were directly fired to the residence of former president Shariif Ahmed by Al-shabaab fighters who seemed to be sending a message to his candidacy. He made a name for himself by being the leader who could bridge the gab, but history has shown that he could neither defeat them militarily nor bring them to the table. His former friends are emboldened by his opportunistic moves and would not rest until they take a revenge against him, so we do not want a leader who is playing chicken games against Al-shabaab. He was also well known to tell every one what they liked to hear without taking strong position in some of the crucial issues. In fact, the Kenyans entered Somalia without his permission . When the Kenyans entered Somalia in 2011, his first reaction was to oppose and reject their moves, but later on, he was pushed to backtrack his stand and eventually accepted their presence. Just like Hassan Sheekh , he also believes Somalia as a nation or it's leaders could not stand without others walking them as toddlers learning how to walk. Of course , a country that went through civil war and many other calamities like Somalia, needs as much help as we could get, but the countries priorities must rest with the leadership and the people to dig themselves out. If you read some of the statements regarding former president Shariif Ahmed in the Wikileaks cables, you would be surprised that he is not only incapable leading in to strong direction, but can not even help himself. In his conversation with the under secretary of state for Africa , he is begging the state department to arrange scholarship and living space in one of American university. Here, we have a president who could not even pay or arrange himself a few semesters of English language school without the guidance of a foreign power. . In 2011, he spent in Uganda almost eight days , sleeping and staying in their hotels like some kind of a homeless person. I am not making this staff up, it is how this president behaved in difficult times. Believe me, this generation of Somali leaders have probably came from the same generation of Somalis who have build nothing or had never experienced any thing great about their people and country. Regardless of how ruthless or dictatorial they were , I will take C/yusuf, Caydiid or Siyaad Barre any day against this hapless group of incompetent leaders. A former member of Somali revolutionary counsel, Ahmed Hassan Muuse, who is living a quite life in Burco , Togdheer--narrating his early years of the revolution---said " when foreign embassies or delegates send a telegram to meet us, we just dragged and dragged our feet, which took sometimes months", he continues, " because we knew they always wanted to force their agenda against our throat regardless of how we felt, but we held our ground". He also said we never dealt with NGO's in ministry level. Well, this were the proud Somalis of yesterday. The presidency is not a family affair ( Qori isu dhiib ma ahan). Marna Rashiid marna Risaaq, inta kae ma rootibaa. This poem was proclaimed by Shariif Ahmed's community in the middle of sixties. But the big difference is those men the poem referenced were elected or appointed through direct elections without the presence of foreign powers or extremist insurgents. While it is important for the Mogadishu based communities to play important role in the rebuilding of the nation, the idea of rotating the presidency from Shariif Ahmed To Hasan Sheekh and back to Shariif, means nepotism at it's worst. The idea of keeping the power to Shariif and company at the expense of other Somalis is unacceptable. In 2016, Somalia needs a leader with no packages, whether that is Al-shabaab, Islamic court, Damujadiid or any other names. The new leader should be just a decent Somali who did not create this mess directly or indirectly like Shariif Ahmed. On that and many other reasons , I do not think former president Shariif should be brought back ti fix a mistake he created years ago. Having said that , the Shariif is among those who have a higher chance of winning this election than many others. By the way, that does not mean he is the best candidate. Having eliminated the Shariif and Sheekh Hassan, let us look the other remaining candidates. Cumar C. Sharmaarke C/raxman C/.shakur Warsame Mohamed C. Farmaajo. Since my last post two weeks ago, the chances of C/weli Sheekh Ahmed went down , while those from Farmaajo are growing. We have to wait and see for few weeks how Mr. C/raxman C. Warsame is faring in this battle. I did see one his campaign speeches and he seems to be well versed on issues of governing, accountability and economy. He is a man who have enough education on both world ( Aqoon diineed iyo mid maadi), and he is not related to Shariif and Hassan Sheekh which is very important in this election. Before we discuss the chances of C/raxman Warsame and Farmaajo, I would like to address how our prime minister is faring in this contest. Cumar C. Sharmaarke, the prime minister. While his ancestral homeland is in Puntland, Mr.Sharmaarke was born in Mogadishu which makes him a local boy from the nations capital. Those who know Mr. Sharmaarke consider him to be as cool as cucumber. He does not have some of the weaknesses most Somali espouse in their daily interaction which is quick temper and emotion. One member of parliament describing him said: " Mr. Jawaari, the speaker, may got angry by some of the issues pushed by the government , and suddenly pick up the phone and call the prime minister", he continued , " knowing how the matter is delicate, he would ignore the phones for hours or so and then call him back latter after things cooled down". He seemed to be well versed the Mogadishu game which needs some skill . He hails from a great family. His father was the first prime minister of the independent Somalia in early sixties. He was also the second president of the republic. Before his Assassination by his body guard, Somalia was a beacon hope and peace. The blood spilled by that faithful day of October 15, 1969, was the end of a good beginning for the republic. On the other hand , he seemed to be a man of law energy....................... To be continued. On the next segment we will finish the premier, C.C. Warsame and Mohamed Farmaajo.

Abwaan Sangub is one of the remaining Somali playwright and composers of our time and we wish him good health. The good thing is, he is among his people . Also we salute mr. Coldoon.

Protests did happen in Ethiopia before, but this time it is bigger, bolder and fearless. Also, the reaction of the ruling class is as paranoid as any despot. Meles knew both the Oromo's and Somalis. When the Oromo agitated, he would go to their zone , sit down with them , make himself at home and bribe if possible. This Hailemariam guy is really paranoid. It is probably coming from the fear the Tigray guys feel from the Ahmara , as some kind superior creed. In their media they call the Ahmara as those who look down others , as racist or even the KKK. The other problem is the Ahmara's are every where in the government bureaucracy , the universities, and the media, while complaining the TPLF domination. add all that the 90% or so from the diaspora are Ahmaric. Rather than shit in their pants, they should bring closer the Oromo and concentrate their security efforts by purging the Ahmara. More security and more armored vehicles in big cities will not resolve the problem.

I see Cabdi Illey declare independence and defend the land . As soon as the Tigray declare independence , he should make peace with Oromo and recognize one another. Then hold a quick referendum and join the Somali union. Then within a year send 10,000 Liyu police to Mogadishu and finish off the cat and mouse game of Amisom and Al-shabaab. Biciid kanan dili doono subagiisa ma dhami.

Imagine 2 million people gathering for festival. This Oromo is really something unusual. They will get their independence soon.

This is exactly like former Yugoslavia, artificial nations put together by the allied powers. Che, this is huge . That " Shanta Soomaaliyeed", which our fathers dreamed for long time might be possible. This is a change of the century for Somalis. The empire that would have disappeared in 1974, after the down fall of Emperor Haile Salaase , was kept alive by a communist dictatorship until 1991. When Menguistu was overthrown by the TPLf in 1991, Meles and his army could not enter Jigjiga. They thought the Somali guerrilla fighters who challenged Minigistu before the TPLf would probably there. according to eye witnesses, they waited almost few months before they realized that the so called Somali lion was not there anymore . They could not believe what they found. They found a community fragmented by the Somali civil war that does not have any coherent army or political strategy. An old man by the Name Makhtal told meles to leave the land and proposed independence., but just like the Somali peace conferences of the nineties Meles dragged his feet, bought some time and eventually got his way. As soon as the Tigray declare their independence , we should declare ours too.

Fear is the what keeps dictators in power. If the gene leaves the box it is all over. Look at the Soviet Union, it was the fear of the communist party the kept people in line and as soon as that fear disappeared , it collapsed. $40 million Oromo rebellion will be hard to control. We are all busy watching crazy lunatic Trump and Mogadishu , but this is going to be the story of 2017.

I did talk today to someone from Galmudug and he told me that a renegade group within Galmudug, who are allied with President Hassan Sheihk were trying to attack the Gaalkacayo airport and destroy both Puntalnd strike forces based their and the Americans running the drone. He said , after the deadly attack the main idea was to bring Amisom troops to Galmudug and create some business for themselves and also empower president Hassan to postpone the election. As we speak, Galnudug president C/kariim Guuleed ordered all Galmudug state government to prepare the regional election and halt all other government services. He knows that the more the election is posponed the more problems for his region and others like Hiiraan.

Ahmed this is the full article. Bad baynu ka hadlaynaaye waxa laga yaabaa in faraha la inoo geliyo hawlo aynaan ka bixi karin. Dagaalka shiicada iyo khaliija weelkiisu buuxsamay ee laga yaabo in uu mar dhaw daato in aan ku dhex milano ayaan ka baqayaa. Baarlamaanka Soomaaliya ayaa laga rabaa in ay dib u eegaan oo ay ama diiddaan ma ansixiyaan dhamaan heshiisyada ay madaxda Soomaalidu galayso.

Dhaxal-sugaha Imaaradda Abu dhabi, ahna Abaanduulaha ciidamada qalabka sida ee dalka Isutagga Imaaraadka Carabta Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan ayaa shir jaraa’id oo uu qabtay September 25, waxa uu ku sheegay in dalkiisu heshiis la galay dalalka Soomaaliya iyo Masar,kadib wadahadal ay la sameeyeen dowladda Mareykanka si looga dhiso Magaalada Berbera ee waqooyi galbeed Soomaaliya dekad ganacsi midda ugu weyn dunida. Berbera , waxa ay dhacdaa meel u dhow gacanka Cadmeed oo ah marinka “ Baab Al Mandab” oo ah goob laga go’doomin karo dekadaha iyo Maraakiibta wadamada Djibouti , Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Masar , Saldannada Cumaan iyo Bahrain. Berbera waxaa Maamula Maamulka Somaliland oo sheegta inuu gebi ahaan ka go’ay Soomaaliya, balse dunidu ay u taqaan Maamul hoosaad ka tirsan dalka Soomaaliya. Maamulka Somaliland iyo Shirkadda Dekedaha caalamiga ee Dubai ee loo yaqaan DP World ayaa bishii May, 2016 ku kala saxiixdeen Magaalada Dubai mashruuc wadaag ah oo ku baxeysa lacag dhan $422 Million USD oo dib loogu dhisayo dekadda Berbera, ayna ku maamuleyso shirkaddaasi muddo dhan 30 sano. Heshiiska Somaliland ay la gashay DP World oo ay iska dhega tireen Madaxweyne Xasan Sheekh Mohamud, Ra’iisul wasaarihiisa Cumar Cabdirashiid Cali Sharma’arke iyo Wasiirkiisa Arrimaha Dibadda Cabdisalaam Hadliye Cumar inay cadeeyaan mowqifka rasmiga ah ee dowladda ayaa mar qura lagu soo baraarugay socdaal shaki dhaliyay oo Madaxweynaha waqtigiisu dhammaaday ku tagay Magaalada Abu dhabi, kulana kulmay Dhaxal-sugaha Imaaradda Abu dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Lama shaacin waxa laga wada hadlay kulankaasi shakiga dhaliyay ee qabsoomay August 23, ee qaab qaabilidda Madaxweynaha ay u ekeyd wax hareer marsan hannaanka lagu yaqaan diblomaasiyadda iyo hab maamuuska, balse sawirada laga qaaday fadhigaasi uu ka tarjumayay in gorgortan hoose la galayay. Dad badan oo u dhuun daloola siyaasadda Soomaaliya, ayaa waxa ay sheegayaan in damaca waalan ee Isutagga Imaaraadka Carabta uu yahay mid halis siyaasadeed iyo dhaqaalle gelinaya mustaqbalka ifaya ee Soomaaliya, lana mid noqon doono mid la mid ah caqabadaha ka soo banbaxay heshiiskii iskaashiga ee Kenya lala saxiixday 2009 ee sabab u noqday in muran la geliyo xuduud badeedka Soomaaliya ay la wadaagto Kenya, iyadoo dhowaan Dowladda Soomaaliya ay hordhigtay Maxkamadda Caalamiga ah ee Cadaaladda ” Hague” feylka ku saabsan arrintaasi, labada dalna ay aragtiyo iska horjeeda kala dhiibteen. Isla September 25, waxaa Xafiiska Madaxweyne Xasan Sheekh Maxamuud ka soo baxay War saxaafadeed ku qornaa luqadda “ English” oo uu ku sheegay in haddii dib loo doorto uu ka shaqeyn doono xoojinta waxa uu ugu yeeray xiriirka istiraatiijiyadeed ee dowladdiisu la leedahay Isutagga Imaaraat-ka Carabta. Sida heshiiska Dowladda Isutagga Imaaraatka Carabta ay la gaartay Soomaaliya, waxa uu qeexayaa in Imaaraat-ku ay ka aas’aasi doonaan dekad ganacsi xeebaha Soomaaliya oo kaalin muhiim ka cayaari doonta ganacsiga caalamiga ah. Fulinta heshiiskaasi , waxa uu ka qeyb qaadan doonaa xoojinta ammaanka marin biyoodka “ Baab Almandab”, halkaasi oo dowladda Isutagga Imaaraat-ka Carabta ay ka dooneyso inay ka sameysato saldhig milatari oo dhanka badda ah . Waxaa la tilmaamay in fulinta heshiiskan uu ka hor’imaanayo Istiraatiijiyadda Sacuudiga iyo siyaasadeeda ku aadan Marin biyoodka “Baab Almandab”, taasi oo aaney marna ogolaan doonin Dowladda Boqortooyada Saudi Arabia in Dowladdu Imaaraat-ku maamusho marin biyoodkaasi muhiim-ka ah. Waxaa sidoo kale, arrinkan diidmo kala hor’imaan kara wadamada Djibouti, China iyo Ethiopia. Djibouti iyo Ethiopia waxaa ka dhaxeeya heshiisyo ganacsi iyo mid milatari, waxaana labada dal ay ka heleen taageero dowladda China oo u dhistay khad tareen oo isku xira Magaalooyinka Addis Ababa iyo Djibouti , si la mid ah Ethiopia waxa ay saanadeeda milatari , raashiin iyo agabyada kale oo ay ku jirto gaadiidka iyo qalabka elektaroonikada ay kala soo degtaa Dekadda Djibouti oo si casri ah dowladda China ay u dhistay markii dekaddaasi laga ceyriyay Shirkadda DP World oo hore u maamuli jirtay, halka Djibouti iyo Imaaraat-ka xiriirkooda diblomaasiyadeed muddo gaaban noqday mid mugdi galay. Dowladdo badan oo ay ku jirto Iran iyo Israel ayaa marar badan isku dayay inay Soomaaliya heshiis la galaan si ay u maamulaan marin biyoodkaasi istiraatiijiga ah oo halis gelinaya ammaanka qaranka qaar ka mid ah wadamada carbeed. Dowladda Isutagga Imaaraat-ka Carabta waa dowlad yar , aan laheyn awood balaaran oo dhanka milatariga ah, balse ku xeel dheer abuuridda qalaanqal siyaasadeed iyo mid ammaan, iyada oo adeegsaneysa lacagaha ay ka hesho iibgeynta shidaalkeeda. Sida saraakiil sirdoon ay hore u xaqiijiyeen , Dowladda Isutagga Imaaraat-ka Carabta waxa ay ku lug laheyd afgembigii dhicisoobey ee dalka Turkiga ka dhacay July 15, ee shacabka dalkaasi oo taageero weyn u muujiyeen Madaxweynahooda Recep Tayyib Erdogan ay ka hortageen ciidan is abaabulay oo xukunka awood kula wareegi rabay, Dowladda Soomaaliya ayaa noqotay dowladdii ugu horeysay ee diidmo adag kala hortagtay afgembigaasi fashilmay, halka Dowladda Imaaraat-ka ay dhaleeceysay afgembigaasi 24 saac kadib markii si rasmia ah loo ogaaday inuu guul dareystay. Saraakiisha sirdoon, waxa ay kale oo xaqiijiyeen in Dowladda Isutagga Imaaraat-ka Carabta ay ka dambeysay afgembigii aan dhiigga ku daadan ee Milatariga Masar ay xukunka kala wareegeen Madaxweynaha xabisan Mohamed Morsi . Morsi ayaa xukunka laga tuuray July 3, 2013 muddo sanad kadib markii si dimoqraadi ah loo doortay, waxaana afgembiyay Taliyihii ciidamada xilligaaasi, haatanna ah Madaxweynaha dalkaasi General Abdel Fattah El-SISi

That is good news. It has been almost eight years and Somalia still do not even have two brigades of army who can fight well. With all the money that was spent in Amisom and others, who knows it could have built a national army. The Turks dispatched 200 trainers and said they will train up 10,500 Somali soldiers. Many years ago I said, Two mechanized brigades could eliminate Al-shabaab and others. You do need to play a cat and mouse. Amisom usually liberates a town from Al-shabaab , but their fighters move to the country side and regroup again with almost no casualty. In the real traditional wars, armies clash and when you defeat the army , they suffer causality and they surrender both arms and men. Rather than chase them until the end and finish them of , a known routine of endless war is going on between Al-shabaab and AMisom. The city of Marka alone has changed hands more than three times this year alone. I jiid aan ku jiide waa jeenyo daalis. markaas buu rabaa weliba hadana in la doorto.

Again, Allah ha u naxariisto intii dhimatay. Malister, Saaxiib you got some points there and maybe we should all wait for the American investigation. The only thing I would like to add is that we Somalis always try to cure the decease without finding out the symptoms that caused in the first place. We all agree that the biggest threat to Somali nation state is the international terrorism manifested in the name of Al-shabaab and those who are arming them. Look the army of Al-shabaab and how they look: matching " Cimaamad", sandals, new army uniform, medical equipment for those wounded and all logistics of an army supplied by someone. If you want to see indigenous insurgents , go look how ONLF soldiers look like or the Suldan Wabar led AWdalites in the mountains last year. They looked like the original Somali "Janhad" with not enough food , clothes or arms. This Al-shbaab thing is a project to keep Somalia down, so we should clean among us in order to survive. https://www.google.ca/search?q=ciidamada+al-shabaab+ We all want The Americans to hunt down a terrorist or another Al-shbaab associate, but The Americans are an elephant and when they room the land they always do more damage than good. They may eventually eliminate the menace of Al-shabaab, but it will take them a long time. Our friends in Galmudug did not realize the grave danger of Al-shabaab taking hold in central regions. There were members of Al-shaab captured in action who were in jail in Puntland last year. One of them was released after his associates kidnapped people and demanded his release. He was released, and that was same the guy who organized the truck bomb. Another land mark of the American drones are they target mostly wanted individuals regardless of the cost or the collateral damage. Believe me , it is hard to hide in Mudug unlike Mogadishu. We all hope that Puntland and Galmudug will cooperate to eliminate the national threat of Al-shabaab.

Tilamook, I really, checked this information carefully. You can not wipe the women and children with misinformation. This is really a good wake up call for Galmudug. I heard that because of the huge truck bombs that hit Gallakcayo, brought some focus to that region. there will more drones, and Even secretary Kerry commented about that huge truck bombs

According to a British news paper, the British government are sending more troops to Somalia. Most people did not see the report, but the British explicitly said that their main goal is to train regional armies who are more effective against al-shabaab. They accused the Somali army of being controlled by " Soviet era generals' who are outdated. They will be concentrated in Lower Shabelle and Bay regions. So folks , there will be more strikes against many Somali militia's if they do not clean themselves of Al-shabaab menace.

Hello guys, Good Friday, I hope by now the emotions of the Mudug incident have calmed down compared to yesterday. Sometimes, it is wise to wait and gather the necessary information before shooting a comment. Now, let us look carefully on the Mudug drone strike and those who were involved. First of all, the Americans do not ask anyone's permission to strike those they deem to be terrorist or armed non state actors rooming the land. They did hit Al-shabaab leaders and other enemy fighters in Jubbaland, Shabeelle, Bay, Bakool and Gedo. Neither the Somali government nor others are consulted. On that note, The Mudug drone strike is not different than those taken by the Americans. Also, you would not hear anyone from the local forces or the so called Somali army complaining. Second, there are American trained and paid strike forces that operate in many Somali regions including Puntland and Galmudug. These forces have their own command and control who are independent from the local administration. For example, the Puntland based PS forces are among the best trained forces who have engaged Al-shabaab forces in Galgala mountains and other parts of Puntland. Few years ago A/raxman Faroole tried to replace the head of the PS general Osman Dayaano. The general refused. How can you fire someone whom you do not pay his salaries and equipment. Faroole even traveled to America and asked the state department and others to coordinate their security efforts with the Puntland leadership. Nothing was offered and the PS of Puntland is still independent from the local militia. The American defense department and it's overseas military operations has it;s own policy of making security alliances with those it considers effective against insurgents and terrorists. They closely ordinate with Kurd's in Iraq, Shia militia in Iraq and some Afghan tribal warlords. Even during Cabdi qaybdiid's term in Galmudug, there were some American funded troops there. So, to make the story short, some militia connected with Galmudug, fired some shots few nights ago around the Gaalkacayo airport perimeter and fled. American drones were following the movements of certain wanted members of Al-shabaab in the area . The information about the group came from Galmudug intelligence members and the Puntland PS forces. As of now , the Americans claim to have video of the strike and wanted members who were captured in this operation. Also the Americans consider any threat against the PS and those who are at the forefront of the fightagainst Al-shabaab as a threat to themselves, thus they act decisively when they detect any unknown movements in the area. I hope some of this information will calm down the nerves . It wasn't like C/weli or the Puntland government asking for help to destroy Galmudug forces. I know there are some who are trying to take advantage of this incident and wipe tribal animosity between neighbors. Remember , whether it's the president or the prime minister , Somali leaders have no say of the movements and operations of the foreign troops, let alone Puntland . If it was the PS who were responsible for the strike, , you must know they are not under the control of Puntland. Puntland ayaa Maraykanka keentay wax soconaya ma ahan.

Update, The latest news is people in Gaalkacayo are now saying those killed were rural people. They should clarify this. earlier reports said they were part of Gamudug soldiers. If this were non commissioned people rooming the land with arms, then the Americans are probably correct. Any way we need the correct information to analyze better.

If these were regular Galmudug army militia , then condolences to all. Allah ha u naxariisto.