Excellent! Well done to our Somali brother.

Ive managed to obtain a copy of the budget and, as I suspected, its a hot mess and fraught with error.

I'm just about to file a misconduct enquiry against Shulman Rogers & co. I hope that other SOL members can do the same. Follow this link to the Virginia Bar Counsel to file a misconduct Inquiry: http://m.vsb.org/site/regulation/inquiry

Yes, I have been exposed. Thank you for your input.

Taking action against Shulman Rogers & co Can all SOL members who live in the US report this Shulman Rogers law firm to the Virginia Bar Counsel (that is because this firm is based in Virginia) and any other appropriate authorities in the US. They need to be held accountable, if not have their license revoked. The law firms full name is: Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, P.A Follow this link to the Virginia Bar Counsel to file a misconduct Inquiry: http://m.vsb.org/site/regulation/inquiry If this law firm is involved in corruption and is actively trying to appropriate the financial resources of the Somali people and government, they need to be held accountable. This law firm was first appointed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed to 'recover' the Somali government's assets that were frozen in international banks in the early 90's. However this firm is estimated to be taking 25% of any assets it recovers which is an extortionate amount - they are profiteering from a country that is only just emerging from 20+ years of war. There is no transparency whatsoever of what their role is, how muxh money they have recovered on behalf of the Somali government, or what they have done with this money. There are serious concerns about corruption, aprropriation/siphoning of funds and how [un]ethical and morally responsible their work is. Yusur Abrar has now also shown the world that this firm is involved in shady deals with corrupt officials and that there is a clear intention on part of these officials and Shulman Rogers to appropriate these assets and to stash the recovered monies in personal bank accounts. In her [resignation] letter to Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Somalia’s president, Yusur Abrar (Somalia's Central Bank governor) said: “From the moment I was appointed, I have continuously been asked to sanction deals and violate my fiduciary responsibility to the Somali people as head of the nation’s monetary authority.” In the strongly worded letter, seen by the Financial Times, Ms Yussur – a former banker at Citigroup who had not lived in Somalia for several decades – said she believed that these deals “put . . . frozen assets at risk and open the door to corruption”. In her letter, Ms Yussur also said she “vehemently refused to sanction the contract” with Shulman Rogers, a US law firm contracted to recover overseas assets frozen since before the civil war started in 1991. The same company was also hired to discredit the UN allegations of financial mismanagement ahead of a Brussels aid conference at which donors ultimately pledged $2.4bn, in what UN experts said was a conflict of interest. The law firm has previously denied any conflict of interest and said the UN experts made unfounded allegations. SOURCE: http://m.ft.com/cms/s/0/5bf9ac6c-431...44feabdc0.html Giyaajo Camalow who Awdal Press has named as one of the people who was pressuring Yusur Abrar to put fund into an unknown bank account is one of the men originally appointed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed to 'recover' the Somali government's assets that were frozen in international banks in the early 90's. Yusur Abraar ay ka biyo diiday oo sheegtay in lacagta Bangiga dhexe lagu soo xareeyo oo aan la ogolaan karin in bangi shirkad ajinabi leedahay lacagtaas lagu shubo. Lacagtaas oo lagu qiyaaso 100 milyan dollars iyo in kabadan. Su’aasha ugu weyn ayaa ah yaa ku kalifay gudoomiyaha Bangiga dhexe Yusur Abraar inay is casisho? Yusra waxaa ku kalifay inay iscasisho waa seddexdaas nin ee kor ku xusan waa Kamaal Gutaale, Muuse Ganjab, Cabdiasiis Giyaajo Camalow oo heeshiis hoose uu ka dheexeeyay inay lacagtaas wada qeybsadaan laakiinse Yusur Abraar ay ka diiday kadibna hanjbaadyo iyo cagajugleyn isdaba joog ah ayaa qadka Kamaal Guutaale oo chief staff isagoo isticmaalaya magaca Bangiga Dhexe ee Soomaaliya ayuu siiyay shirkada Shulman Rogers lacag cadadkeedu dhan yahay $870,230 (sideed boqol iyo todobaadan kun iyo laba boqol iyo soddon dollars) oo loo siiyay shirkadaan Shulman sida ku cad dokumentiga inay ka difaacdo dawlada Soomaaliya eedeymahii ay UN monitoring group soo gudbiyeen. Shirkada Shulman Rogers ayaa sii qoratay shirkad kale oo arrintaan kala shaqeysa lana yiraahdo Podesta Group oo ka heshay shirkada Shulman rogers lacag cadadkeedu yahay $120,000 dollars sida ku cad documentiga wasaarada cadaalada mareykanka loo gudbiyay. SOURCE: http://www.awdalpress.com/index/archives/25270 Last year (2009), President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed appointed Mr. Amalow to lead the effort to recover the funds. The government contracted Maryland-based law firm Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, P.A., to help recover the assets, according to a copy of the agreement between the two parties that was seen by The Wall Street Journal. A representative of Shulman Rogers confirmed that the firm was working to recover assets on behalf of the Somali government. The firm has experience in tracing and recovering assets, often for companies or wealthy individuals. Work on recovering the money began in earnest in February. At least $1.5 million has been recovered from European banks so far, according to a Somali government official familiar with the process. He declined to offer further details. SOURCE: http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/...207072?tesla=y

^^ Makes you wonder if Shiekh Shariif Sheikh Ahmed still has a hand in this. After all, he was the one who appointed these men to 'recover' these funds.

So far, millions of dollars have been 'recovered' in the name of Somalia. Where has this money gone? What has this firm (Shulman, Rogers & co.) done with this money?

Can all SOL members who live in the US report this Shulman Rogers law firm to the Virginia Bar Counsel (that is because this firm is based in Virginia) and any other appropriate authorities in the US. They need to be held accountable, if not have their license revoked. The law firms full name is: Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, P.A Follow this link to the Virginia Bar Counsel to file a misconduct Inquiry: http://m.vsb.org/site/regulation/inquiry If this law firm is involved in corruption and is actively trying to appropriate the financial resources of the Somali people and government, they need to be held accountable. This law firm was first appointed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed to 'recover' the Somali government's assets that were frozen in international banks in the early 90's. However this firm is estimated to be taking 25% of any assets it recovers which is an extortionate amount - they are profiteering from a country that is only just emerging from 20+ years of war. There is no transparency whatsoever of what their role is, how muxh money they have recovered on behalf of the Somali government, or what they have done with this money. There are serious concerns about corruption, aprropriation/siphoning of funds and how [un]ethical and morally responsible their work is. Yusur Abrar has now also shown the world that this firm is involved in shady deals with corrupt officials and that there is a clear intention on part of these officials and Shulman Rogers to appropriate these assets and to stash the recovered monies in personal bank accounts. In her [resignation] letter to Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Somalia’s president, Yusur Abrar (Somalia's Central Bank governor) said: “From the moment I was appointed, I have continuously been asked to sanction deals and violate my fiduciary responsibility to the Somali people as head of the nation’s monetary authority.” In the strongly worded letter, seen by the Financial Times, Ms Yussur – a former banker at Citigroup who had not lived in Somalia for several decades – said she believed that these deals “put . . . frozen assets at risk and open the door to corruption”. In her letter, Ms Yussur also said she “vehemently refused to sanction the contract” with Shulman Rogers, a US law firm contracted to recover overseas assets frozen since before the civil war started in 1991. The same company was also hired to discredit the UN allegations of financial mismanagement ahead of a Brussels aid conference at which donors ultimately pledged $2.4bn, in what UN experts said was a conflict of interest. The law firm has previously denied any conflict of interest and said the UN experts made unfounded allegations. http://m.ft.com/cms/s/0/5bf9ac6c-4319-11e3-8350-00144feabdc0.html Giyaajo Camalow who Awdal Press has named as one of the people who was pressuring Yusur Abrar to put fund into an unknown bank account is one of the men originally appointed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed to 'recover' the Somali government's assets that were frozen in international banks in the early 90's. Yusur Abraar ay ka biyo diiday oo sheegtay in lacagta Bangiga dhexe lagu soo xareeyo oo aan la ogolaan karin in bangi shirkad ajinabi leedahay lacagtaas lagu shubo. Lacagtaas oo lagu qiyaaso 100 milyan dollars iyo in kabadan. Su’aasha ugu weyn ayaa ah yaa ku kalifay gudoomiyaha Bangiga dhexe Yusur Abraar inay is casisho? Yusra waxaa ku kalifay inay iscasisho waa seddexdaas nin ee kor ku xusan waa Kamaal Gutaale, Muuse Ganjab, Cabdiasiis Giyaajo Camalow oo heeshiis hoose uu ka dheexeeyay inay lacagtaas wada qeybsadaan laakiinse Yusur Abraar ay ka diiday kadibna hanjbaadyo iyo cagajugleyn isdaba joog ah ayaa qadka Kamaal Guutaale oo chief staff isagoo isticmaalaya magaca Bangiga Dhexe ee Soomaaliya ayuu siiyay shirkada Shulman Rogers lacag cadadkeedu dhan yahay $870,230 (sideed boqol iyo todobaadan kun iyo laba boqol iyo soddon dollars) oo loo siiyay shirkadaan Shulman sida ku cad dokumentiga inay ka difaacdo dawlada Soomaaliya eedeymahii ay UN monitoring group soo gudbiyeen. Shirkada Shulman Rogers ayaa sii qoratay shirkad kale oo arrintaan kala shaqeysa lana yiraahdo Podesta Group oo ka heshay shirkada Shulman rogers lacag cadadkeedu yahay $120,000 dollars sida ku cad documentiga wasaarada cadaalada mareykanka loo gudbiyay. http://www.awdalpress.com/index/archives/25270 Last year (2009), President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed appointed Mr. Amalow to lead the effort to recover the funds. The government contracted Maryland-based law firm Shulman, Rogers, Gandal, Pordy & Ecker, P.A., to help recover the assets, according to a copy of the agreement between the two parties that was seen by The Wall Street Journal. A representative of Shulman Rogers confirmed that the firm was working to recover assets on behalf of the Somali government. The firm has experience in tracing and recovering assets, often for companies or wealthy individuals. Work on recovering the money began in earnest in February. At least $1.5 million has been recovered from European banks so far, according to a Somali government official familiar with the process. He declined to offer further details. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704846004575332141943207072?tesla=y

Giyaajo Camalow who Awdal Press has named as one of the people who was pressuring Yusur Abrar to put fund into an unknown bank account is one of the men originally appointed by Sheikh Shariff Sheikh Ahmed to 'recover' the Somali government's assets that were frozen in international banks in the early 90's. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704846004575332141943207072?tesla=y

Any thoughts on this piece? http://www.awdalpress.com/index/archives/25270

Have the accounts been audited? Are the figures which are published to the public figures that give a true and fair account of the financial position? I highly doubt it.

Mahadsanid QansaxMeygaag.

*Blessed;982835 wrote: ^You raise a valid point with regards to those who are not convicted or found guilty of the crime but how about the cases where they are convicted? Would you be okay with that? Oday Somali (and most nomads) seem to be objecting to the thread because "it makes Somalis look bad". Every nation and community has it's criminals, we don't have to carry their burden of other peoples mistakes. Also, contrary to some arguments as regards to airing peoples 'sins', the hadith is concerned with small sins, our deen actually requires that society publicly addresses criminal activity, this serves to warn others and encourage open discussion on immorality. It takes someone who is, if not not pleased, at the very least excited about reading and posting these kind of disturbing new stories - especially when Somalis are involved - to persist with posting even after so many objections from SOL members. The whole thing is borderline sadistic and this thread has schadenfreude written all over it. What purpose does this thread serve... is anyone discussing the cases or immorality? No. Is the thread starter intent on or encouraging such a discussion? No. Is anyone "addressing" the situations that lead to these instances of criminal behaviour? No. If you like reading these kind of stories then fine, go ahead and do so. But its perfectly reasonable for SOL members to object to and to question what is the intended result of starting an entire thread dedicated to nothing but posting negative stories about Somalis involved in serious crime. Absurd.

D/p

Nin-Yaaban;982660 wrote: War ileen tanoo kale....adiga miyaadan daalin? I've explained it o you, and you still haven't gotten it. If the Mods/Admins haven't deleted it by now, i dont think it's going anywhere.....ma'arkinoo. Sidaa ula soco sxb, Niyahow madax adagidaa. Numerous people have told you that this is a disgraceful thread. Yet you persist. Waxaan ku waydiiyay what purpose does this thread serve?... Other than to disseminate information about Somalis involved in criminality who have disgraced themselves and their people? Wax xun laguma dhego sxb lamana sii fidiyo.

Blackflash;982627 wrote: Are there any forum rules being broken? I don't see what grounds mods would have to close this thread. :rolleyes:

This is such a disgraceful thread... I dont know why mods leave it open.

I kid, I kid

Che -Guevara;982260 wrote: I always Odey and OdaySomali was the same person. We know the problems, any solutions? How can you compare a cheap imitation to the real deal?

Girl trafficked from Somalia to the UK had organs harvested' A girl was trafficked from Somalia into the UK to have her organs harvested, it has been revealed. The case - believed to be the first of its kind in Britain - was revealed in a Government report which found the number of people being smuggled into the UK has risen by more than 50 per cent in the past year. In total, 371 children were trafficked, including 95 from Vietnam, 67 from Nigeria and 25 from China, according to the review. The girl's organs were taken with the intention of selling them to someone requiring a transplant. Child protection charities warned the shocking case is unlikely to be an isolated incident. http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/girl-trafficked-somalia-uk-to-2473440

@ Yoniz. Excellent post. The scarcity of power and the high prices are one of the major constraints to job creation and economic development in general. We cannot have a competitive light industry/manufacturing sector because the required inputs are either not available or so expensive as to render many projects economically unviable. The questions that arise are: how do you fund power generation? What type of power do you go with? What is the return on investment in the short term and the potential for exit? Convential sources or power e.g. coal fired power stations may be cheaper than renewables but then you have the added ongoing cost of of inputs (coal). In the long term wind/solar energy may work out as economical. It will require research and a comparative cost/benefit analysis. But you also have to bear in mind the opportunity cost, that is the oportunities forgone by taking a particular decision e.g if you invest in 1 small coal powered power station from which you do not see a return on inveatment for 15 years , you forego the opportunity to invest in large scale fisheries, agriculture, meat processing, leather products etc. from which you would see an immediate return on investment (in perpetuity) and which you could re-invest after 3-5 years. Also, you may invest in power production but if no-one has the capital, know how, willingness or need to utilse the energy you produce, youve just wasted the money and tied it up in a dead project. In other words demand has to be there.

Nin-Yaaban;982013 wrote: What i would do is, i would call all the elders/siyaasidiin/and others and tell 'em to draw up a list of everything they need. Anything from building schools, paving roads, setting up libraries, buying essentially needed goods, etc. After that is done, a bidding process is going to be opened up, and the job/contract would go to the company that can do it the cheapest. I would also look into bringing skilled Chinese workers to do some of the projects if the locals can't do it. That's how i would do it. Great point Nin Yaaban. I am a big advocate of stakeholder consultations. I wouldnt necessarily ask elders what they want because they do not necessarily know what the country needs. Siyaasiyiin on the other hand, its important to understand what their motivations are and what constraints they think the country faces. Its also important to consult the general populace and organisations within key sectors and industries. I am a big believer in strategic partnerships and co-operation to leverage the knowledge, contacts, experience and influence of key players within different sectors.

*Blessed;982162 wrote: Horta $250 milka yaa bixinaya? Ma rabo in aan sidii kuwii riwayada lacag aan jirin dadka isu qabsano Maxaaba la isu qabsanayaa? Lama bixinayo lacag. This is not one of those initiaves where various NGO's or 'regional governments' are taken as the implementees. This is a privately owned and managed initiative. And we are only talking about £150m pounds here so it is not particularly a large amount of money. And the best way to manage such a process is to work discreetly without fanfare and so as not to catch unwanted attention.. under the radar so to speak. Any suggestions from you Blessed as someone who is on the ground?

QansaxMeygaag;982010 wrote: Oday, why not start with a log frame? It is at the heart of project management... We can all help you.... What's the overall Goal, break that down into purpose statements then objectives then see what activities the money can do.... Overall goal: to improve the wellbing of and the economic opportunities available to Somalis. - improved food & water security - improved health care facilities accessible and affordable to all - improved education and training, accessible to all, which is relevant and practicaly applicable in industry - improved economic opportunities through job creation and support of small business. To alleviate the major constraints to economic development e.g. lack of power generation, beaurocratic bottlenecks, ports. - political stability and accountability. Good governace, efficiency and effectiveness. - to support the domestic capabilities (through universities and other inatitutions) of research and policy formulation and to link encourage co-operation between universities and public sector/industry. So, Qansax Meygaag what activities/projects/initiatives would you suggest?

Abu-Salman;981958 wrote: I guess I'm not that bright but there would be no need to reinvent the wheel for the most crucial and productive priorities do not necessarily cost much or can even save money: averting land speculation, urban planning and public parks or open spaces, basic litteracy campaign and encouraging public reading or libraries (there is some local precedent in the latter area and Somalis are fond of learning or teaching on a volunteer basis). For the limited yet significant cash to go further, spending on civil service training (patriotic and competent core elite would be crucial to public service efficiency) would need to be prioritised alongside health prevention, hygiene and sanitation (hand washing, child and maternal nutrition ect) which will litterally transform the prospects of future generations. By then, the health or HDI indicators, for what those numbers are worth, would have shifted very much (already done in minimal resources settings such as India Kerala ect).o The linked sector of water & irrigation is another natural priorities and schemes (some excellent public-private cooperation done in African countries could be used as templates to be adapted to local conditions): appropriate technology irrigation to boost farming, aquifers mapping, regulation, villagers training and public clean water points (keys to health indicators). The other bulk of the cash should go to strenghten the training of healthcare workers in partnership with private providers as well as construction skills (key to inflation prevention and long-term recovery). An interesting and very promising way to boost rural incomes equitably is local honey, at a high premium everywhere and ideally suited to local conditions (well established in Yemen, requiring minimal individual investment) and of course conservation to protect the ecology and prevent deforestation (often done alongside each other). Then, maybe some remaining scraps could be used to bring down power generation costs and encouraging sustainable fishing. But then again, a well-trained public service minded core elite would be key to all that; standing up against elite greed or land speculation and prioritising equality through health prevention, urban planning and parks, litteracy and rural/low-income sectors would be even more vital than anything else... PS: I don't subscribe to communism albeit world admired Cuba and other places succeeded in providing very high quality public healthcare or education at low cost to their masses but basic human needs and the less powerful should always remain the priorities or what really matters. Thanks Abu Salman, I do have a few questions. 1. How would you avert land speculation? 2. How would training a civil service make the money go further? We are not seeking to play or replace government or directly provide public services per se. What do you think about investing the in reproductive assets i.e. assets from which a financial return is made? 3. In reference to water resource management, could you provide some examples/links of Public Private partnerships? This sounds very interesting.