Somalia’s faulty federal system dooms nation to governance failure

By Mohamed Ahmed Ali

Let me first admit that I was once a big fan of the inclusion of federalism in our Constitution.

No more.

The way the so-called “presidents” rule their regions has made clear to me — and perhaps to everyone who initially supported the introduction of the federal system in Somalia – that there is more to the current application of the federal system in Somalia than just names.

What we now see in our own eyes is a country being slowly – but deliberately — carved up into fiefdoms. New flags have been adopted. A new title, “president,” is being misused. And foreign countries from the previously passive US to the ever-active EU are not only willing to heap praises on the establishment of clan enclaves, but keen to provide financial and military support to these new “countries.”

The current application of the federal system in Somalia is, to me, apparently aimed at tearing at the fabric of the nation. Our so-called federal system intentionally makes mockery of honorary titles and adulterates the whole governance system in the country.

I am not being cynical if I say an international conspiracy to destroy the country is afoot – up and running indeed.

While the northeastern and northwestern regions are being led by professional individuals, if misguided and unpatriotic, the rest, especially in the south, is being headlined by “presidents,” with questionable qualifications.

In 2013, Ahmed Mohamed Islam, a former Islamist whose only qualification was his subservience to Kenya, was elected as the “president” of the Kismayo-based administration. The “president” in Baidoa, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, who’s alleged to have strong ties with Addis Ababa, has no proper education to qualify him for the big position he holds. Many have even in the past questioned his claim that he had finished high school. That so-and-so can become a “president” shows the weakness of the system practiced in the country.

Mohamed Abdi Ware and Ahmed Duale Gelle are yet to fully establish themselves as “presidents” in their respective “countries,” while Banadir region is angling for having its own leader to form the sixth “emirate.”

The qualifications for setting up a “state” in south-central Somalia appears to be something like this: A leader must have strong links to neighboring countries. “States” must be dominated by a specific clan, with a few minority add-ons. Establishment of regional administrations must also be rushed. There must be some sort of disagreements over its formation.

That is not what Somalis were envisioning when some gullible politicians pushed for the federal system. They wanted a system that guarantees them security, justice and development, not a system that detaches them from the rest of the country or shepherds them to bondage to foreign countries.

One question that remains unanswered in this frenzy to try and break up the country is: Where does the border of one region start, and where does the border of the other end?

In management they say, “you can’t manage what you don’t measure.” None of the ubiquitous “presidents” can confidently tell the exact border of his “country.” None of them can say for sure that the establishment of a new region is good for his people. And perhaps none of them wants to know that because the real intention seems to be nothing but making bucks in the shortest time possible in the name of running such and such “country” independently.

What is happening in Somalia nowadays, especially in the southern and central regions, is an insult to the intelligence of every Somali who wishes to live in his region in a dignified manner. The irresponsible utterances by national leaders are adding to the confusion, as they continue to call these selfish politicians “presidents” and their administrations “governments.”

The so-called international community, the actual bane of Somalia, should devise better ways to help Somalia instead of resorting to destructive methods, such as financing and supporting clan states and awarding them with lofty titles and recognition. Because if this faulty federal system isn’t checked, it will definitely doom the nation to governance failure.

Ali is a contributor to The Somalia Star.