By Abeeb H.Dukseyeh

The views expressed by Abdi Jowhar in the "Gadabuursi Manifesto" are not all shared by the majority of the said clan - I included. Hence, the title of his article is misleading and misrepresenting the clan opinion. I am not a fan of President Daahir Rayale nor do I applaud the jailing of Haatuf News Editors. Nevertheless, I believe, President Rayale has improved on what the late President Egal had achieved before him. Under difficult circumstances - lack of international recognition, lack of international government to government development aid and occasional Arab boycott of Somali livestock, the main source of hard currency earner, Somaliland has continued to enjoy peace and stability. Mr. Rayale has presided over successful clan based democratic elections and a thriving private sector economy - these are achievements of sorts.

We know from our experience in the West, investigative journalism, properly and ethically performed can play an important role in exposing public officials’ misdeeds in matters of public interest. It is imperative that investigative journalists should have access to any information or source of information if the matter warrants public interest. It is this kind of exposing public officials’ misdeeds, misappropriation of public funds and the subsequent measures taken to redress the mistakes that can enhance the performance of public officials and the proper functioning of the government machinery.

Having seen the so – called evidence collected by Haatuf News in order to implicate and defame the president of Somaliland and members of his family, it looks to me that the editors of Haatuf News need to have more lessons about their trade. Apparently, they need to learn to distinguish between what is in the public interest and what is not. Buying a small plot of land, building a small house or buying a small pick-up truck is not a big deal. These things do not require a lot of money. Anybody can afford these things. There is no public interest in these trifle personal matters and should never have been brought into the public domain by the editors. On the other hand, it looks the Rayale government has over-reacted to the writings of the editors. The editors should have never been put in prison for what they wrote. Perhaps, they could have been asked to pay a fine, if a trial in court found them to have trespassed into the affairs of private citizens.

To say that the election of President Rayale was a “magnanimous act” on the part of the majority clan towards their compatriot Gadabuursi is, I would think, an indication of Mr. Jowhar’s lack of understanding about the workings of Somaliland clan politics. Contrary to Mr. Jowhar’s expressed views the majority of the Gadabuursi do not believe that Somaliland is “pregnant with revolution”. Somalilanders have learned to live with the clan-based democratic elections and I am confident that the alarmist Mr. Jowhar, will be proved wrong. To say that the fate of dictators like Nicolae Ceausescu and Mussolini awaits Mr. Rayale must be ridiculous. Unlike those, Mr. Rayale was democratically elected and he will be deposed by the ballot in a fair democratically held election. That must be clear to Mr. Jowhar.

Mr. Jowhar claims that his “ …..Manifesto” is the “collective clan position”. But that is simply not true. Indeed, it is a misrepresentation of the clan opinion and he shouldn’t have used the name of the clan in order to sell his personal opinion. I will be surprised if Mr Jowhar could get the signatures of a majority of the Gadabuursi in Canada to his so – called manifesto let alone the signatures of those in the home territory. Unless Mr Jowhar collects representative signatures of the clan – which must mainly include those in the home territory – he should withdraw from using the name of the clan and apologize.