Somaliland May Be Teetering Toward Failure

What Can Be Done To Avoid That?

PART ONE

By Noah Arre

It is unfortunate but is a fact that Somalia as a sovereign state is no more. It is also painful but true that a nation that was once a model of pride and democracy for black Africa,…..it was the first African country that through election peacefully transferred power from one president to the next in 1967… from Adam Abdulla Osman to Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke, seems to have wiped itself off the world map forever and the Irish man of Africa (Somali) is today in fact the outcast of the continent.

Today, one can see traumatized people everywhere often embarking on long treks with their personal belongings on their heads and backs to the unknown. Some seek refuge from the deadly guns of their kin and kind or from that of their occupying Ethiopian forces. Others are sorrowfully scattered all over the world as legal or illegal refugees living on the handouts of those who care humanity and the so called Transitional Federal Government, if legitimate at all, is doing nothing to redress that. In fact, Awdal News Network reports that it (TFG), is selling new Passports to its people whose monthly income if at all is $150 at the extortionate prices of $150 per copy! This is a crime against humanity and it is happening at a time when those (Somalis) who are still alive deserve better treatment! This is happening at a time when even America’s passports cost ten times les. Sorry, it is the get rich quick syndrome of those who care the least!

In addition, hundreds of thousands of Somalis cross the Red Sea daily only to meet their death and their bodies end up in the jaws of the hungry sharks that often invest the high seas. In short, it certainly hurts but the nation of Somalia has wiped itself out of the Horn of Africa map as its problems are way beyond any repairs and Somalia as one knew it once is probably gone forever.

In the case of Somaliland, on the other hand, unfortunately, there are worrisome signs that make one believe that under present conditions, Somaliland too may be teetering toward failure and needs immediate salvation.

How & Why?

First: poor Somaliland has neither a benevolent big brother in the Arab World nor one in the racist West which selectively offers recognition to others solely on the basis of kin and kind or creed. And the West’s meager “humanitarian assistance” when available to others often comes through third parties, with strings attached, and sadly in trickles that are far too little to save deserving states like poor Somaliland. It is also sorrowful that the opportunist West always puts national interests before everything and had the fledgling democracy of poor Somaliland had proven wealth: diamond, oil and gas, they… the West, would have landed there (Somaliland) like swarms of locusts without invitation from poor Somaliland whatsoever.

Added to that is the debilitating poverty caused by the Arab World’s refusal to buy Somaliland’s livestock, the sole hard currency earner of the nation. And sadly but surprisingly, indifferent and hopelessly myopic ignorant Somalilanders of every kind and class spend millions of dollars on Khat daily…a proven drug that only drains their health, their wealth as well as their invaluable time that could have been spent on helping develop their country to achieve better lives for their people!

Second: Somaliland intellectuals, whether inside the country or elsewhere, shamelessly only bash on tribal issues in their tribal websites or in other media outlets and sadly refuse to address or debate over the burning issues that could highly help the development of their country or over issues that could help improve the lives of their people.

Thirdly: Poor Somaliland; its government fails to address national issues. Rather, it fights to defend its wrongs and its inability to serve the nation well with its ministries open for work only a few hours a day is a witness to that. Had Somaliland government utilized its time and resources by establishing an 8-hour-work a day since its birth; had all government employees including ministers been ordained to work from 7:30 to 3:30, a lot would have been accomplished and the Khat drug use that drains the meager national financial resources as well as the valuable time of the people could have been reduced if not completely eliminated. Furthermore, had Somaliland government agencies and ministries established special entertainment programs like sports, the national health, moral and wealth could have dramatically improved and their dividends could have helped struggling poor Somaliland leap-frog into the twenty first century!

Worst yet, poor Somaliland; all its ministers’ portfolios are distributed solely on the basis of tribes and each ministry seems to belong to a specific clan that also gives the post to a specific sub-clan member!... a trend that needs redressing at whatever cost if this nation is to become a viable nation that is capable of competing with the rest of the world!

Fourth and Finally: Poor Somaliland, neither its governing party nor the opposition parties, address issues of national value or of substance. Rather, each whacks on the other and often one hears only the negatives of one or that of the other! Unfortunately, all forget that doing so is only a sign of poor leadership; it is a recipe for disaster; it is the wrong road to take it and it is a sign of one’s failure!

What Can Be Done To Avoid It (Failure)?

First: Incredible Somaliland must take an aggressive campaign to break isolation. It could do so for instance, by going to Taiwan, Iran or any other nation that welcomes it. It could and should call its diasporas who could and should arrange invitations to Somaliland ministers who are in a better position to explain their national problems, elaborate their country’s needs and achievements to date without any international assistance.

Second: Impressive Somalilandshould let the bells of freedom of the public and freedom of press ring freely everywhere. It should see freedom of the media as a tool of checks and balances and a sign of freedom and democracy for all! Therefore, for heaven’s sake Somaliland should not take the rights of those who sweat round the clock just to let the public know what takes place in their own backyard.

However, the judiciary ministry of Somaliland should too have the right to spell it loud and clear that those who violate their rights are liable for law suits and are susceptible to jail terms should they proven guilty! Such laws should hold any one who unfairly targets any Somaliland citizen in general and any government official in particular accountable for his/her irresponsible reports and should be sued for defamation and damage! And certainly Somaliland media reporters/operators should be made to understand that they too are accountable for whatever they post in their media…Responsible reporting and respect of the rights of others should apply equally here!

Third: Incredible Somaliland, in its forthcoming presidential elections, its people must cross the tribal barrier as before but should demand good leadership and vote for those who deserve to lead Somaliland out of the doldrums. Somaliland people for instance, must demand a hard copy of the next five-year program or plans for progress from each party. And should neither produce a credible one, I would propose that the nation appoints six traditional elders who are proven honorable and unbiased…and there are plenty of them in every town and village…, one from each region, to sit down, as always at times of troubles, under the traditional acacia tree and select one of them to run for the top job on an independent ticket. And should he win the election, the other five should become his advisors for his term.

One advantage of this is that traditional leaders are often unspoiled by corruption, greed or mismanagement. In addition, they usually are highly capable of restraining their respective clan members who may try to foment unrest or call for false alarms. And last but not least, they are selflessly willing to lead the nation since they are always ready to take any credible advices from wherever and from whoever they may come from!

Fourth And Finally: The next president of Somaliland, be he anyone, should surprise the whole world by giving only 25 ministerial portfolios to only Somaliland women. Assuming this is done, it will be the first government of its kind in the history of mankind. It will surprise even the sole superpower of the world ( America) that has yet to accept voting for a woman president despite being the best democracy of the world… a democracy and constitution that call for equality. It will surprise the African Union; it will surprise the European Union. It will be a glaring proof of the reality of democracy and progress on the ground in Somaliland. And it will truly solidify the fact that Somaliland is “ Africa’s best kept Secret”. It will prove that Somaliland is truly the “Little CountryThat Could” and it will show that mistreated and unfairly intimidated Somaliland truly deserves better international attention and treatment!

However, giving portfolios to women only may shock the Arab World and it may upset many ignorant medieval type mullahs who may live in all parts of Somaliland, but whose narrow-mindedness probably occasionally tempts them to believe that “doing so is a crime against Islam!” But it will certainly never shock the whole Moslem World because many of them have been there before!

Another good thing of this proposal would be that since women always nurse and nurture when men often wantonly devastate and destroy; since women always handle things with tenderness and since women’s love, care and kindness never exhaust, Somaliland women could lead our young nation from today’s uncertainty to tomorrow’s fame and recognition because often women’s moral ethics, their respect of humanity and their attitude toward their responsibility are always unparalleled!

And for those who may have short memories, Somaliland women were the only ones who always took the torch of peace and hope across our entire Somaliland during the civil war. It was only Somaliland women who fed the needy, the sick, the poor and children across the entire spectrum of Somaliland. And I can certainly bet that Somaliland women can and will care a lot and carry out their responsibilities with diligence and respect if only given the chance to lead Somaliland!

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