The grave dangers of Khaire presidency

[Deeq A.]

Hassan Khaire has proved to be uniquely inept at everything he did as a prime minster, except for his focus to put the country’s resources on the black market. A Khaire presidency will be akin to putting a hungry fox in charge of the henhouse.  

One of the most egregious examples of Somali politics is the remarkable transformation of Somali politicians. The usual sycophancy when one is in office drains away as soon as they are kicked out of it, and their inevitable cross-dressing into diehard opposition figures is complete. As no one answers to voters, everything is based on personal interest, and as soon as the interest ebbs away, it is all over. There is no such thing as integrity, doing what is right for the country or acting in the national interest.

This is why Khaire’s candidacy to be the next president of Somalia should worry us all. Until a few months ago, he was claiming to have turned the country around; delivered unparalleled economic progress never seen before; secured debt relief and prepared the country for elections. Until of course he was ousted unceremoniously. He is now telling us that the government (well, his government) had not delivered on the basics and he is the one to take the country forward. This is another first.

A Khaire presidency will be another debilitating national self-harm. Here is why:

• The extraordinary rendition of Qalbi Dhagax

Khaire was the prime minster that allowed the illegal extradition of Qalbi Dhagax to face certain death. The remarkable aspect of this is that we are yet to hear what his role was and why he did not stand up for the country when it really mattered. He now wants to be the guardian of the same constitution that he failed to protect. What is even more remarkable is the fact that his government labelled millions of Somalis as terrorists – a designation that still stands. Even when Qalbi Dhagax became a free man, Khaire did nothing to right this wrong.

What was Khaire’s role in the Qalbi Dhagax case? Does he believe the designation of millions of Somalis as terrorists to be right? If not, why did he not have the guts to stand up when it mattered or did something afterwards?

Either he agreed with the rendition of Qalbi Dhagax and did nothing, or he did not like what happened but chose to save his skin, instead of doing the right thing at the time, or even indeed afterwards. If it is the former, he is merely a quisling who cannot be trusted to protect the country and the people; if it is the latter, his pusillanimity shows he is someone who does not have the guts to do the right thing for his people. It means, given the chance, he will do the same thing all over again.

• The lingering smell of state capture

The issue of state capture – the systemic corruption that thrived when he was in office – did not just spring up from nowhere. It was not simply a matter of the odd pilfering of the country’s budget, but the wholesale targeting of the country’s jewels. For proof, look at the questions surrounding the production sharing agreements, the contracts and concessions given to his old company – a process that interestingly carried on despite his ousting. Somalia’s Financial Governance Committee report in October 2019 continued to highlight serious concerns about this, noting that what was happening was detrimental to Somalia’s national interest.

Khaire has not explained whether he continues to have a beneficial interest in Soma Oil and Gas; why he ignored the concerns noted by the FGC and the implications of granting licensing to his old company. Given the inherent serious conflict of interest, he failed to confirm whether, if he becomes the country’s president, he will be committed to putting a moratorium on all natural resources contracts and concessions during his term in office until the country has credible institutional systems and controls and there is a full audit of all current arrangements with foreign companies.  This is not only about oil and gas, fishing is another “fishy” issue and very little is known about Khaire’s interest or position.

With Khaire in charge, do we risk waking up one morning to find out the country is now owned by an oligarchs and foreign companies?

• No economic progress

The first and most important milestone that should have been implemented in Khaire’s first year in office was currency reform. The ruinous economic consequence of a dollarized economy is here for all to see. Khaire failed to deliver this reform and in fact shelved it altogether. None of the laws and regulations on anti-corruption; terrorist financing; public financial management; and procurement had ever been implemented. A great proportion of the country’s budget was never accounted for (with his own office having more budgets than the Ministry of Health) and there has never been full end-of-year accounting of the government’s spending when Khaire was in office. At the same time during Khaire’s term, Somalia slipped in the inglorious corruption listing – the bottom of the bottom – as the world’s most corrupt country according to Transparency International 2020 assessment.

Where exactly is the economic progress that Khaire delivered as a prime minster?

• Plan for the country

By the time he was ousted, Mogadishu was a blockaded and bloody city in which terrorist atrocities became too frequent. Millions have been prevented from going about their daily lives, and we have all seen the scenes of dead bodies being carried on people’s shoulders because of the blockade. The rest of country in riven by political strife or is in the hands of terrorists. Fear of terrorism means roads outside of Mogadishu are unusable and domestic flights are now the only option. Given he failed to make any meaningful progress on tacking the country’s chronic insecurity, even Mogadishu’s for a start, why does he think he would be able to do any better this time? What is his plan for the country?

• Fessing up and taking responsibility

We all remember the pompous self-justification of his “achievements” (“Anigoo og…) the night he supposedly “resigned” after being ousted. Ever since he found himself in a political ditch, he has yet to publicly account for his record in office and answer the questions above. Throughout his term in office and even now, he never sat in front of the independent media and took questions; he never answered questions from the public directly; he never explained why his government failed to deliver on core economic and security priorities.

If he cannot bring himself to account for his actions, his record in office or set out his vision for the country, then does he think doing a “Farmaajo”, by hiding away until election day, would be the answer? Perhaps, he believes the Somali people are too stupid to even ask these questions?

Of course, voters do not decide who the next president of Somalia will be. A fistful of good old dollars or sponsorship from a foreign country will. In the event, Khaire clinches it, we are in for another debilitating national self-harm and this time, foreigners will be laying claim to half the country.

A country already in intensive care needs a capable doctor that can bring it back to good health, not a funeral director who is salivating at the prospect of an imminent death to secure his funeral fees and a bit of the inheritance. It is the main reason Khaire is avoiding scrutiny.

That is why a Khaire presidency will be akin to putting a hungry fox in charge of the henhouse.

Abdi Ali can be reached at abdirahman.ali3@gmail.com.

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