Fantastic Farole - A Nomad's Perspective on Puntland's Former Leader

[NGONGE]

 

Fantastic Farole - A Nomad's Perspective on Puntland's Former Leader

The past five years in Somali politics have been amazing and full of major changes. We had the whole drama of preparing to move Somalia from having a transitional government to the one it has now. We had the ugly emergence of Al Shabab. We had the endless problems with piracy and the awful interest it attracted from other parts of the world. We’ve had the (proper) elections in Somaliland and the hope they gave to others that Somalis are able to conduct FULL, peaceful and real elections. We also had all those conferences to work towards a peaceful and functioning Somalia.Sheikh Sharif may claim to have played a big part in all of this. Farmajo may point to his own short reign as PM and try to claim some of the glory for himself. The new PL president may argue that it was all down to him. In fact, almost every other prominent Somali politician can brag about their part in all of this. However, the one and only constant that towers above all is the troublesome Imam.Farole had a hand in everything and tried to have a say in every subject concerning Somalia (and a few that didn’t). They may call the great Imam, Farole, but his hand reached all parts of Somali politics.He played a major part in creating the Somali Constitution. Played a part getting rid of incompetent Somali administrations and he even managed to fight and defeat his own version of Al Shabab.Farole was troublesome, prickly and quarrelsome. He was not short of an enemy or two (up to and including comedians and caricaturists) but he seemed to relish his job and enjoy the conflicts. It was also very clear that he had Puntland’s interest at heart and would fight tooth and nail to ensure PL got what it deserved.Some might argue that the Imam hindered the political process and slowed Somalia from achieving its goals. This, in time, may turn out to be true. However, as it’s still an unproven supposition, I choose to go the other way and argue that his clashes and tussles with other Somali politicians and leaders may have actually helped in speeding up and advancing the reconciliation process.The Imam exposed their incompetence, showed up their naivety and put them all on the spot whenever they trod on his toes with some ill thought argument or policy. He alerted the Somali public and the International Community to the various shortcomings of whomever was in charge of Somalia at the time. Yet, he also praised, met, shook hands and smiled in photo opportunities with his various foes whenever he met them.So now, the Imam’s job is done (prematurely in his opinion) and he has to sit back and watch how Somali politics will unfold without him to prod, cajole and push it into shape. Will his successor manage to build up the same gravitas and have a similar aura to that the Imam has? Will Somali politics start to operate a couple of octaves lower than it did when the Imam was at its centre? Will PL keep its autonomy in the same way it did under the Imam or will his successor throw his lot fully in with Somalia?The one thing that I am sure about is that the Imam will keep on following Somali politics very closely and will be shouting at his TV screen the words “Ma Dhici Karto” every time a new Somali scandal or event takes place.By NGONGENGONGE is a Somalia Online contributor and a long time member

http://www.somaliaonline.com/bulsho2/fantastic-farole-a-nomads-perspective-on-puntlands-former-leader/

[GaadhHaye]

Rating Faroole’s campaign promises, one finds out he failed miserably to remove the SNM gangs from the sacred lands of SSC people. The bloodlines amongst the people of SSC and the rest of Puntlanders are ”tightly” and closely interrelated than those of Somalis who inhabit the triangular area of Hargeisa, Burao and Barbara who are spearheaded by the SNM gangs. The IC, in unison, rejected the phantom state that SNM gang has been trying to carve out of mother Somalia for the last 22 and some years. With such legal and moral support from the majority of Somalis and the family of nations, Faroole did not even attempt to talk Siilaanyo, the head of the gang and his in-law, out of occupying the homes of the SSC people let along mobilizing the resources of Puntland, the mother of Somali Federalism, to send the SNM gang militia home. He promised in his presidential campaign he would accomplish such task in the first three months of his administration. He knows full well the inevitability of war and bloodshed if the SNM gangs do not go home.