Ina -Yeey is unfit to rule the country

[OLOL]

This interim president, Mr. Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed, is unfit to rule the country. He has consistently demonstrated, since the very first day of his election, serious deficiencies in judgment, political maturity and the ability to formulate an exit strategy from the persistent turmoil haunting our nation. To the contrary, under his tutelage, the dreams of the long suffering Somali people and the sweat of the international community are about to disappear into the thin air. He has deepened the divisions, increased the distrust and has further entrenched the hostilities to an alarming level, where sudden and incontrollable explosion of violence is, once again, almost inevitable.

His arrogance, vitriolic rhetoric and bullying tactics have but completely paralyzed the already slow turtle pace race towards peace and the opportunity to bring Somalia back from the depths of despair and into nationhood. Shocked and disillusioned, many are dismayed as they watch helplessly the undoing of their long waited dreams. It is hard to comprehend for many how elderly Somalis, negotiating in good faith, aware of the plight of their people and the destruction wrought onto their country, could fathomably fail in reaching an agreement, forgiving each other and ceasing hostilities? Our forefathers have been doing exactly this same thing successfully over and over again throughout our history.

 

Apparently, something has awfully gone wrong and all the fingers are pointing in the direction of the president. Blinded by the pursuit of supreme power, unmoved by the suffering of his people, ignorant to the political realities on the ground and mute to the deafening calls for reason and moderation, this president has become everything that a Somali president should not be, particularly in these tumultuous times. It is by now clear that he never really intended to go to Mogadishu, secure or insecure, until he garnered enough fire and man power to silence all and every conceivable opposition to his rule. This perhaps explains the unprecedented and strange servile disposition on his part towards Zenawi, the prime minister of Ethiopia. It also further exposes the true objectives behind convening the extraordinary parliamentary session on May 12, 2005, with less than the required quorum, on the eve of the African Union’s proposed endorsement to deploy foreign troops in Somalia and the next day departure of the prime minister to Addis Ababa. Albeit if this act was in flagrant violation of the interim charter with grave consequences which could jeopardize the pillars of the constitution and the legitimacy of his administration. If the president could wrestle the legislative powers from the hands of the parliament even before his regime sets foot in the country, or openly threaten the speaker to throw him into the depths of Wardheer wells, one could only contemplate what would follow once foreign troops “assist†him in getting a foothold inside the country. Welcome “Jaalle Abdullahi, Aabbihii garashada geyigayagowâ€. What a tragedy?

 

The Lame Duck Prime Minister

 

Obviously, it is of no wonder that the prime minister is so contemptibly meek and ineffective to face the president and reign in on his trespasses, given the way he was appointed.

 

Perhaps, the second biggest blunder the parliament committed, apart from its selection of Mr. A.Y. Ahmed as the president, is its endorsement of the way the prime minister was appointed. As we all recall, Mr. Geeddi gained the premiership when Mr. Mohamed Dhere, a staunch supporter and a political ally of the president, Ethiopian armed and groomed strong man of Middle Shabelle, vacated his parliamentary post. One could understand the preciousness of a parliamentary post in the present day Somali polity. Fathers slay their sons to win a seat, let alone voluntarily vacate a post for a fellow clan member. So what has Mr. Geeddi promised in return and what was the real deal and price? Whatever the deal was, not withstanding the sad crippling effect it had on the ability of the prime minister to freely and independently execute his duties, it also rendered the parliament as a trading place where strong men exchange positions in return for favors and monetary rewards, ultimately undermining its legitimacy to serve the people.

 

As a direct consequence of these same arrangements, the prime minister missed valuable opportunities to win over politicians on the other side of the aisle which could have produced tangible successes in moving the country in the direction of a stable and viable democracy. In his last trip to Mogadishu, he was in the capital city for 9 days and did not even once sit with one of the most powerful men in the opposition, simply because he did not have the nod from his boss in Nairobi. It is not easy to serve two masters at the same time. Mr. Geeddi put himself and the country in a very difficult position and must extricate himself from this dilemma.

 

Some will argue that in our present day situation, only a strong leader, the likes of Mr. Ahmed could salvage the country. This argument holds water only when one accepts the premise that the people are like herds of animal that should be driven to the slaughter house by whipping and beating them. Only and only then could a sense of normality be gained in Somalia. On the other hand, as attested by our culture, the Somali people deeply believe that they are decent by nature and are ordained as honorable human beings with intelligence, dignity and are by birth endowed by their creator with indelible rights. They hold true that consent and consultation rather than coercion and intimidation is the proven and more effective way in achieving lasting peace among men.

 

To repair the damage and set the path for meaningful reconciliation and true nation building, Somalia needs a visionary president, just and untainted by political ambition, above and over petty tribalistic tendencies and solely driven by a sense of duty, patriotism and love for his people. A leader vividly described by the honorable Sayid Mohammed over 100 years ago.

 

Abuu yahayba aadmiga ninkii sama ekeynaaya

Abtirsiinya kii xigay nimaan iniq u dheeraynin

Addoomaha Ilaahay nimaan kala irdhaynaynin

 

by: Rashid Ali

 

Baltimore, MD

 

email: Rashid_Ali_66@hotmail.com