It was a great day for the Ottawa Somalilander Community. A respectable member of our Ottawa Somalilander Community has triumphantly comeback from home after successfully wining a seat in the recent parliamentary election in Somaliland.  Honorable Basha Mohamed Farah is also the current deputy Chairman of the Somaliland House of Representatives.

The Hall of the Villa Marconi was full of enthusiastic members of the community.  The tables were full of cakes sambuusas.  The children were running with flowers, and the flash of the camera was very present and very blinding. There was a wonderful display of the Canadian and the Somalilander flag all over the place.

I was the Master of the ceremony, and I called first the Principal of the Ottawa Islamic School, Sheikh Mohamed Dalmer.  The great Sheikh read the Quran and gave us a religious sermon on the vitality of helping our people back home in the fields of Education and Health. After that I reminded the audience of the upcoming SOPRI Conference that will happen from 8-10 Sept in Washington DC area, and how it is very important to attend that conference, where great American and International supporters of Somaliland will express their views to the American people and Government. I also stated that the President of Somaliland and the leaders of the opposition are expected to be coming there. It will be a Somalilander get-together day in N. America. Nobody should miss it!

After that, I gave the floor to the Great SNM Mujahid and one of the most respectable elders of Ottawa, Mr. Abshir  Nur, and let me say, he also just returned from Somaliland.  Mr. Abshir gave a wonderful and factual brief of the situation back home. He also stated how great, vigilant and responsible the people of Somaliland are.

After Abshir, Hussein Ali Hussein, one of the most active members of the community, gave a brief history of Ottawa Somalilander Communities. Mr. Hussein is a great intellectual and he made a good analysis of the affairs of the Ottawa community and the different phases of its history.

It was Abdi Yonis who made possible this ceremony.  He conducted it in the name of the Elders Committee of the Ottawa Community. He stood up to talk about the importance of this ceremony.  He thanked the wonderful women who prepared the cakes and the sambusas.  He also thanked the members of the community who helped him prepare this event.  However, the core of his speech was the future plans for this community. 

Right after Abdi Yonis, I announced the presence of Mr. Ahmed Ibrahim who is running for a councilman here in Ottawa. That is the way it should be. Therefore, I asked him to say few words about his campaign. He did it in a masterly way and we all pledged him our votes.

At last, I let one of our most visible political figures in Ottawa, Mr. Abdillahi Geeljire, introduce the deputy Speaker Mr. Basha, and he did it with style and a great sense of humor.

Well the Honorable Deputy Speaker, Mr. Basha  Mohamed Farah made a most remarkable speech. He actually captured the Hall with his eloquence. It was one of the best speeches and  of the most informative that I ever listened to.  He talked about the progress which the parliament has made so far. The different legislations that they have so far completed, the plans that they have for the future, and the logistical problems that they have and possible ways to get solutions for that. Everybody enjoyed Basha’s presentations, and it even tasted fair and sincere to the most skeptical.

After a brief recess question period started.  Dr Eyo who is a great friend of Somaliland asked the honorable Basha what would be Somaliland future relationship with Somalia, in which the honorable deputy responded: Except for a Union, Somaliland is ready for any other possible relationship. Dr Eyo and everybody applauded the sharp response.  

Two of the most prominent elders , Mr. Ismael Dualeh and Mohamed Haji Dualeh  asked the speaker some pertinent questions in which the honorable deputy speaker answered in a very responsible manner.

Then the crowing of the great event was when the great statesman Mr. Ibrahim Meygag Samater stood up to say few words of congratulations, encouragements and prayers. Ibrahim who is a great intellectual, has got a way mixing humor and wisdom and that was a very electrifying closure of the day.

Mohamud Tani