By Dr. Hirsi Sa'ed Hildiid

On the eve of the creation of the political parties in Somaliland, there was a tremendous euphoria in that there was finally the hope that these parties would pave the way for a true democratic process to take root in our "Best Kept Secret". Many of us in the Diaspora have remained impartial to the political parties and instead invested our time in cultivating and encouraging the process itself by, at minimum, cheering for all parties. During this course, out of the three parties, there was a lot of focus on Kulmiye in particular for the simple reason that many well known academics have joined in the ranks of the party. Expectations were indeed so high that Kulmiye was seen as possessing the quality in their ranks to deliver and lead us into the Promised Land that has alluded us all this time. Unfortunately, Kulmiye did not live up to the expectation. In fact, Kulmiye, as of late, has been so utterly dysfunctional and derailed from the path of a political party; many have refused to even refer to it as a political party. A party that was once so promising and attracted the very brightest of our gems has now ended up as the "Poster party" of failure and incompetence. We are left with the so many unanswered questions of why Kulmiye has ended up barren that did not bear the fruits many had expected of it. In this editorial, I will palpate some of the key reasons behind the impotence and failure of Kulmiye to materialize.

Disclaimer

In my critique and analysis, as much as it may seem personal and finger pointing, it is honestly intended for the sole purpose of saving our Somaliland. Having said this, by default, there is nothing wrong with finger pointing and critiquing the leader when things go wrong and/or there is legitimate claim that deems the leader incapable or simply not fit for the task ahead, as the Somali saying goes "Nin Xil Qaaday Eed Qaad".

When problems surface or are even suspected in any organization, a root cause analysis is the norm and the smart thing to do to avoid jeopardizing the very existence of the organization. This process makes possible to ascertain where things have gone wrong and to find the remedies that could save the organization from further damages and possible annihilation. In our case, Kulmiye has been in shambles for so long and is now on the verge of collapse, that is off course if it is not saved. The question is whom does Kulmiye need to be saved from? A straightforward answer could perhaps be from lack of direction and leadership. Yet, others may be more forthcoming to point out that Silanyo is the culprit, since as the leader of the organization, he has clearly failed- and miserably so- to maneuver a flooding ship out of troubled waters and into safety. Moreover, others may remind us not only his lack of sound leadership qualities but also his more sinister and malignant divisive political and tribal tendencies. In any case, what are more troubling and thus a grave concern is his lack of coherent understanding of the dynamics of the situation. Instead of miraculously hopping and wishing those problems will abate by themselves.

Frankly speaking, he has locked his vision to the seat of the presidency at any cost, even if that is the sacrifice of our dear "Maandeeq" so much so that he has become so myopic to the extent of even compromising whatever wisdom that may have come with old age. Such wisdom by our elders of being above the fray is what differentiates us from Southern Somalis and which through Allah saved our nation, would Silanyo give heed?

Pealing the issues faced by Kulmiye further down reveals and resonates with deep rooted and chronic gross incompetence, which as would be expected stems from atop. In fact this has sparked my vivid recollection of the discourse between the leadership of the Somaliland parties during the SOPRI-I convention in Los Angeles, California. It was such a high time for us in the Diaspora to meet the leaders of our nation and more importantly to listen to their testimonies of what they have achieved and what they plan to do for our people. Time was allocated for each representatives from each of the three parties to discus the vision and "modus Operandi" of their parties for the tacit agenda of introducing their parties to the Diaspora and to solicit support. I believe it was Mr. Hashi of UDUB who started the presentation and painted an elaborate view of what UDUB has done and their unfinished agendas in the pipeline. Engineer Ali Warabe has also presented his socialist view of the developmental plans that he has for the disadvantaged segments of our society. I was very much impressed with both speakers, as any step and effort in the right direction to address or even discuss the plight of our people and country was a heavy deed in our scale as the Diaspora. Many of us, however, saved the greater part of our applause for Kulmiye. After all it was a party that has attracted and incorporated many bright Somalilanders. In our thought, if the other parties have such awesome vision and sometimes audacious plans that for instance in the case UDUB, have been achieved with limited resources, then surely Kulmiye should blow apart the minds of the attendees with their vision and presentation in an educated fashion. Everybody was excited to hear Mr. Silanyo talk. He was going to present us with a brief, albeit, detailed view of the problems and solutions for Somaliland. Mr. Silanyo has taken the microphone with a standing ovation. He started with the words "intaa iyo in ka badan ayaanu qabanaynaa" meaning we will do that and more, referring to the presentations of the other candidates. Excellent, I said to my friend who was sitting next to me. By the face of it, we had expected a presentation that is a fusion of the ideas from the two candidates and certainly more substantial, however, little did we know that we were in for a crash course on the real and "face off " Silanyo, or simply- Silanyo 101.

To our dismay, there was nothing further of substance coming forth from Silanyo except "Intaa iyo in kabadan ayaanu qabanaynaa". His long awaited presentation and introduction of Kulmiye was nonsense rhetoric, at best. Talk about shockers, ladies and gentlemen, this was indeed the mother of all shockers. A prospective leader of a nation that has no agenda for the country, shaken by the lack of quality, I sat in my seat with disbelieve. My colleague, returning my enthusiastic glance just minutes earlier, whispers to me, with a big yet worrisome smile - "war ma sidani ayuu leader isku sheegayaa oo uu waliba madaxwayne uu ku doonayaa, wuxuuba ku leeyahay intaa iyo in ka badan ayaanu qabanaynaa, ma moodaa inuu u sheekaynayo afartii geeljire ee makhaayadaha daabiyadaha fidhiyi jiray, qofku miyaanu ogayn in meesha dad educated ahi Fadhiyan".

Obviously, Mr. Mohamed Silanyo does only have NO vision for our "Beacon of Hope" but sadly could not even raise any single issue of merit faced by our nation let alone elaborate it. There was a clear evidence from that day on, that the party is heading into troubled water under the guidance, or perhaps more appropriately the lack thereof, of Mr. Silanyo.

If there was anything evident from that discourse on that day, it was how much he craved to lead. The parallels with Abdulahi Yosef are very clear - I guess it must be an old school thing.

Talking about old schools, evidently, Mr. Silanyo knows quite well and certainly resorting to the tactics of that school of thought in which of no vision and direction mattered, but rather jump into the wagon, grasp the wheel and keep it with an iron fist. For the sake of the argument allow me to point out how ironic it is that he holds on to Kulmiye with an iron fist and refuse the process of democratization to take place by allowing others to run along side him for the nomination of the party. Yet, he would leave no rock unturned to allege President Riyale is blocking the process of Democratization. Somaliland has passed that stage of holding on to seats. Only if Silanyo could give heed to the wisdom of the younger but gifted Boqor Cusman Buurmodow who has recently recommended Silanyo to step aside and allow fresher and younger generation to carry on the mantle.

In conclusion, what if Silanyo some how miraculously makes through and faces Rayale, in a rematch, sort of speak. Could Silanyo defeat Rayale?

Putting the emotional outpour aside, the main stream educated consensus is that a revisit of more of the same of the last election by nominating Silanyo for the kulmiye party is an endorsement of Rayale for another term. Needless to remind readers that president Riyale who has defeated Silanyo last term, in a classic text book defeat that has gone into the annals of Somaliland history books in infamy, will rest assured easily prove to be a formidable opponent and particularly since he is now aided by an armor of more experience and with pockets full of cash to carry him through the elections.

Faced with Silanyo, Rayale should prepare for another inauguration unless there come a candidate who is up to the task and with fresh ideas unlike Silanyo's old school textbook.

Ladies and Gentlemen, my beloved Somalilanders, let me leave you with a point to ponder upon- and that is if Mr. Mohamed Silanyo could NOT safe Kulmiye out of it's mess, which not surprisingly is due to his lack of vision and deficiency in leadership qualities, would he, in all honesty, safe Somaliland from it's predators?

Clearly, the answer is NO, Silanyo has utterly failed to lead Kulmiye and would certainly lead Somaliland to it's demise. His record speaks for itself.

Prosperous Somaliland….Nabad iyo Caano

Dr. Hirsi Sa'ed Hildiid