Last night I did talk to a local Professor who visited Mogadishu last summer. I asked him if he met or knew the Mr. Khayre the prime minister. He told me that he was staying the same hotel where Som Oil company offices were located. He said the man is resourceful , hardworking and energetic. He is a man with a lot of connections and when I inquired about resolving some issues, he immediately was on top the matter and resolved quickly. Waxa uu yidhi waa nin shaqa badan oo aad wax iskugu xidh xidhay mudadii uu wadanka Joogay. He confirmed my earlier statement that the man is more qualified than most of the previous prime ministers. He said, " he is the only prime minister who have done some work inside Somalia before he was nominated. He also said that he may do some political missteps, but he will not be accused of nor working hard unlike the outgoing prime minister. All indications are this prime minister is ready and well prepared. Will see

This whole sale of national assets must stop immediately. As we speak Somali regional states are becoming bankrupt. They are unable to pay the salaries of their soldiers, police officers and civil servants. For the last four years none of them built any financial management institutions to save guard public purse or create a lasting mechanism to increase taxation and internal revenue. Some like Puntland were waging war against Al-shabaab which is the duty of the national government, that in return forced them to recruit and retain large number of police and military personnel . Both C/weli of Puntland and C/kariim Guuleed of Galmudug ,put their hopes on Damujadiid and Hassan Sheikh. His defeat and the manner they attached their fate to the former president is catching up to them. Mr.Guuleed of Galmudug has resigned and left. C/weli is facing impeachment within the Puntland parliament. The last few days, a convoy of well armed soldiers from his home town of Gaalkacayo, briefly occupied the parliament to halt the proceedings. while they claimed to be missing their salaries for months, the real issue was to save Mr. Gaas. The knifes are out and now he is forced to shuffle the cabinet on behalf of the insurgents. He will be lucky if he finishes his term. The only way C/weli Gaas can keep his seat and plan any future political aspiration in Puntland is to sell Boosaaso port to gulf and gain some cash. His neighbors in the North west has just cashed few millions and divided among the out going Siilaanyo government. The Somali president must stop this flee market type selling of national assets. He must stop any sell or base in the country unless the conditions of the country improves. He should remember that neither him nor the previous governments have mandate to enter premature deals while Somalia is weak. This will be the first test to Farmaajo. B

Dhagax-Tuur, before we judge , we must allow the caravan to travel. The 2015, report of the monitoring group was all targeted one single man: Hassan Khayre. They did not write any thing about cargo of weapons captured in Mogadishu port, the laptop laden with bombs trying to take down Turkish airlines or how Al-shabaab is funded or armed. There are some young men and women of Somalis in the diaspora who are tough, eloquent and educated and can do more. We already have seen their traces i major centers in north America and when they blossom, everyone must panic, because they will sue Ethiopian Generals, Somali leaders who stashed money in foreign places and fighting Somali causes in the diaspora. Believe me it will be sooner than we think. Miyir, , By now every Somali is aware that this election involved millions of dollars, and certainly no one is a saint here. IN order to arm wrestle with big boys especially those who are using the public purse , you need some kind of financial help. I would say that we all hate the game and the way it is played, but we should have some consideration for the players. I heard from some scholars and other commentators talking about the money in the system, yet in retrospective , what we should emphasis is the goal behind the individual who have spent the money. If you spend money and campaign to do good at the end, it could be the great equalizer. No one inquired or even interested when people heard about the money Hassan Sheikh spent in the 2012 election, in the early stages of his rule , but one he decided to serve foreign interests and the enrichment of his own family , people started to highlight his misdeeds. If he spent the money to do good no one would have talked about it. If Farmaajo through his business friends or others spent some money to win the election and in return help his country, all those things will be overlooked. Sometimes , you need to enter the sewer to rescue your people. Further more, political aside , sometimes, we Somalis must choose our own personal interests. We must be selfish for the good of yourself, families and country. We always vote or go against our own interest. Folks, we Somalis must be selfish ones in our life time. We must be selfish and support the safety of ours and fellow Somalis, we must be selfish and help support the government so we can have our own place in the world, we must be selfish and help ourselves. In this pages we supported Hassan sheikh for almost two and half years. When the bombing quadrupled, parliament was attacked, hotels were bombed weekly, and people were silenced for fear of being killed , we said enough in enough. So I would wait and see if he serves the people or the special interest.

It is the worst place to start. The famine needs emergency help, but I wish he had settled down, prepared his government program and face the Saudis with concrete plans. Sometimes, The Saudis will just give you a bag containing 10 million or less , and will tell you, " this is for you". If you are a greedy Somali politician, you would think the money is yours, and forget all the important issues facing your country or what you came for in the first place. . in 2001, they just gave C/qasim $ 17 million and he took the money and put in his villa using as his own bank. This Saudis are probably talking about the Berbera base, the Yemen war and how Somalis could take part in the mess. If I ware Farmaajo, I would tell the King that the Somali nation is rising from the ashes of anarchy, tribalism and famine., sooner rather later we will stand on our feet, so those who help us today. will be our friend in the future. We need real help. We do not need chum change or few millions, we need a marshal plan. We need Six billion dollars from the gulf countries for the next four years, and a billion right now. I will remind the fat boys from the gulf that how they bailed out and provided $16 billion grant to Egypt in order to prop up SISI, including 75,000 barrel of free oil per month. Well, we may not be powerful as Egypt, but we are a full member of this so called Arab league. I will give them ultimatum , give us the money soon or we will kiss good by the Arab league. And one more think Mr. King Salman, tell the Wahabi Ulema in Meca and Jeddah to openly condemn Al-shabaab and their Wahabi affiliates in Somalia. Tell him to announce a new Farwa from his Sheikhs specifically targeted to Somalia, because , we know all the Wahabi Sheiks read the same sermon, whether they in HArgeisa, Kismaayo or Mogadishu. If someone invites you as the leader, accept the invitation and prepare your self for your agenda when you meet them. You can not just fly because someone invited you. It was Shariif Ahmed who in 2010, spend eight nights in Kampala as some kind of homeless president enjoying the hotels. Traditionally, the Saud family never helps anybody unless it's their interest. Just like week, they provided Yemen $3 billion dollars to keep the Yemen currency from falling. I will invite the Iranian foreign minister and then tell the Saudis, if you don't help us we got someone else who is willing to help. The just canceled the Somali livestock import to use as a leverage for the new government. Every four years or so they would ban the import and then open when the new president visits.

No one is perfect, but it is our obligation to give the new prime minister the opportunity to help his people in these difficult times. In any appointments, there are negatives and positive attributes of the individual. At the end we expect his good qualities to shine compared to his short comings. He seems to be among the new generation of Somalis who left the country as a young man and settled in the diaspora. He got some education and came back to home to help his people. He led one of the largest aid agencies from Norway, and through that experience had probably witnessed the suffering and the conditions of the country. Latter he became the chief executive officer of Som Oil company. Leading small but multinational company is a great achievement by Somali stranded. Mr. Farmaajo, refused to follow the old style Somali politics of naming certain groups who think they are somehow entitled to be appointed as prime ministers. It is a good Sunnah that must be copied in the near future. The Puntlanders and Galmudug guys are out of the picture this time around, and if it was up to me , iI would say to them next time you must come back as a united front (haddaad Xukunka ku soo laabanaysaan idinku wada socda oo isku xisbiya yimaada, ama Idinkoon soo heshiin ha noo imaanina). The only negative on the appointment is we do feel some kind of family (nepotism) or alliance . Somalis consider the family of your wife as your allies and kinship, so they probably think that the president was enough for both Gedo And Dayniile communities, yet we hope that he was chosen by his merit and competence. Since the constant quarrel of the president and the prime minister is always an issue, I hope this team will stick together for many reasons. If you Compare to past prime ministers before him, I do believe Mr. Khayre is more qualified than most of them in terms of experience, management, inter-people skills and finally , his service inside the country. Farmaajo was away from the country for twenty years before he named prime minister, while both Saacid, Sharmaarke and others went to Somalia as prime minsters and started from the top. Hence, I do believe he is more qualified in terms of his exposure to difficult times. He will have upper leg in terms of dealing with the international community and other agencies in these tough times. Personally, I am not satisfied with work of aid agencies and NGO's in general, and I do believe that empowering entrepreneurship and contracting out development issue to able Somali businessmen would produce huge results in very short time. Since Mr. Khayre worked with these groups, I hope he will maximize and use these dollars in the right place. Finally, let me address the issue of the monitoring group. There UN groups do some good things in tough times, especially famine prone Somalia, but the Somalia monitoring group were some of the laziest groups that I have seen operating from their cushy hotels in Nairobi. For example in 2013, a week before they filed their yearly report, they just visited a Mogadishu arms depot and wrote a premature report about missing weapons and other issues. At the time I did ask myself, " how can a world body mandated by the security counsel , do nothing a whole year, then visit Mogadishu two weeks before the due date and use that report as their yearly work". For that and many other reasons, I believe these UN bodies based in Nairobi as incompetent group justifying their salary and in return keep Somalia under constant arms embargo that denies the nation for self defense. After all some of these people were mere accountants who never had any investigative experience or other security affairs qualifications. Mr, Chopra was small time accountant from the Midwest. If this prime minister has any major corruption issues, it will surface sooner or latter. I do not want to debate here with Mr. Oodweyne who had made his mind regardless of the facts, but I must say few things about the Som Oil company. I do not have the full detail of that company but, the crest of the matter was, the monitoring group was targeting Mr. Hassan Khayre. Mr. Khayre was proposed by the Somali government to the take the chairmanship of the IGAD group in late 2012. Ethiopia has refused to relinquish the chairmanship since 2008. The principle of rotation and equitable representation is common in all regional organization, regardless of size and wealth. As soon as Mr Khayre tried to gain that powerful title, both the monitoring group and their friends in Ethiopia accused Mr. Khayre of having connections with Al-shabaab. It was absurd charge. Since the aid agencies he operated worked all over the country, he had contacts with local organizations hired to disburse the aid. After careful investigation that UN mongering report group was thrown out as unfounded. While people or intelligence agencies, probably from Ethiopia murdered people who have spoken against Hassan Sheikh, I never accused the former president to be Al-shabaab. That is incredulous. In order to complicate things, as soon as Mr. Khayre was made the CEO of Som Oil, they made their accusations public and connected the Al-shabaab issue with Som oil matter. Oodweyne said, " through his stint of being in-charge of the Soma Gas and Oil, and he will be expected to be suitably inclined to advance the kind of a deal the UK’s major oil companies will come to Mogadishu, within the next few years. he went on , "any deal that may be involve with British’s major Gas and Oil outfit, who will soon descent on Somalia, looking for a piece of action". I did work for big oil companies years ago, and they usually do not just come in and throw billions without assessing the profitability , stability and future growth. These huge multinational are owned by shareholders, and they demand sound accountability . BP (British Petroleum) is the sixth largest oil company in the world. In 2016, their revenue was $18 billion dollars, with an asset of over $260 billion dollars. Today in this province, the largest oil company in the world, Exxon-Mobil walked away $3.5 billion worth of project in Alberta for lack of future profits and higher expenses. if we Somalis are lucky enough to attract a world renown companies like BP, thousands of jobs will be created. We have been talking about this oil thing for 50 years, and so far nothing is in the pipeline. Every nation is trying to attract investment and money. In Somalia, it will be very difficult to attract companies and drill oil at this stage or next four years. If this prime minister have the capacity to land BP and others to drill off shore oil in Somalia, that would be a victory. On the issue of the new prime minister having shares in the company or shares offered to lead the company, I would say it is normal. Executives who are recruited to lead venture companies or established companies are offered shares in the company. He owns 1.9 % of Som Oil, and as we speak he sold his share as soon as he was nominated. This prime minister seem to be competent and ready. Tough job is ahead of him. He must assemble a very strong and capable ministers with energy and commitment in the coming weeks. I also hope his nomination will reduce the Shabaab element in the Dayniile community. I have met many people from the Ceel Buur and Dayniile community and they are some of the finest Somalis. Let us judge him by his actions. Let us not put the cart before the horse. We wish Mr. Hassan Khayre the best. Allah Ha u Fududeeyo hawsha adag.

Folks, dear leader Trump is in the microscope. Last night the media interviewed two renown psychiatrist who were in the process of diagnosis of his conditions. They were analyzing his video clips ad some of his actions. In one debate statement he said that " he lost hundreds of friends in 911". When pressed afterwards, he said some friends. After careful examination, Mr. Trump lost zero friend in 911. They checked the funerals of the victims and found out that e did not attend one single funeral. These doctors have already agreed that he is , narcissistic and paranoid. They also think he is delusional by willfully lying. These days everyone is googling the 25th amendment. Section 4 of the amendment says, "The amendment states that if, for whatever reason, the vice president and a majority of sitting Cabinet secretaries decide that the president is “unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office,” they can simply put that down in writing and send it to two people — the speaker of the House and the Senate’s president pro temp. let that sink in — one vice president and any eight Cabinet officers can, theoretically, decide to knock the president out of power at any time. If the president wants to dispute this move, he can, but then it would be up to Congress to settle the matter with a vote. A two-thirds majority in both houses would be necessary to keep the vice president in charge. If that threshold isn’t reached, the president would regain his powers. Mr. Trump should be very careful. If his cabinet members see erratic behavior and other actions, the republicans and vice president Pence will take over. No wonder why he is rushing... ilayn waa nin baabuur ka tagayo. Waxa laga yaabaa in uu sanadka oo aan dhamaan ina dhaafo.

Ooweyne knows if real refredum takes place. Sool, Sanaag, Togdheer and Awdal will vote for union.

In 2017, I do believe the Awdal community is around 17-19$ based on the election votes of 2003, 2005. THe Siilaalnyo doctored election of the municipalities of 2012, Awdal share was 18% around 600,000 people voted in Somaliland and 90,000 was Awdalites. . Anyway , it is hard to base for real census i n Somaliland. we do need real census.

Anyway I was talking about Faysal waraabe folks. Of course they moved to Djibouti in early sixties, but in 1959, or even 1961, election , they could not win and a seat was given to them without contesting..

Saalax, someone doctored this table , I will find you the original table. The British Somaliland of 1944 was included Hawd And reserve. The 2001 census by the Ethiopian government was the Awdal districts in Zone as 480,000. Lughaya disticts were in habits by both Djiouti and ours, Are you saying the Waraabe of Hargeisa are more tha Awdalites. No way.

The problem about us the diaspora is that we always try to project our image of western style democracy we witnessed in our respective countries. In these countries including Canada, there were responsible government before Representative government. The Canadian dominion was founded in 1867, yet the constitution was repatriated as late us 1981. The most important aspects of these governments and the people is the rule of law. It is the foundation of the system. Every thing revolves around that. Rule of law coupled with economic prosperity is what brought many of us here . If the issue was just democracy, we would have immigrated to India, the largest democracy. Oodweyn, you e keep comparing UK BRexit and other British grievances to the Somali nomads who are just getting by. They UK shares the EU with common market only, and the main reason for Brexit was the movement of the people. Even after the exit , the British will exist and thrive , although not as before. Even when they vote, everyone accepts that this vote was legitimate and according to the rules governing the country. How can enyone believe a vote managed by Siilaanyo and company. Tallaabo, was talking about creativity, imagination and a new Somali confederate. In today's world, you do not need to re-invent the wheel. There are dozens of forms or systems working well throughout the world where people delegate power to local people, ether for geography, economy , ethnic, religious or other reasons. In all these mentioned nation, before embarking union or divorce, they established credible and strong institutions and rules to guide these agreements. The SNM boys out of arrogance or delusional state of rejecting reality , see Somaliland much different than it appears in our eyes. Somaliland is peaceful compared to south central Somali, but it has huge lingering issues and even slow moving warfare in some eastern regions. Many Awdalites consider the system as temporary arrangements among the communities until we reach a better situation. That is why many consider tribal war as aggravating the situation and leading to anarchy. " Adeer Soomaaliland baan qaadi kari laanahay oo meel aan dhigno la' raadinaynaa ee ma wax kale ayaad noo keenteen", that was the words of the Sheekhul Beled of Borama , Sheekh C/laahi Jowhar ,when he heard about Awdal State rebellion. somaliland is fragile both in terms of institutions and tribal harmony. Oodweyne, the so called Wabar issue was not successful , and it was not a well thought and well prepared idea. That does not mean it is dead . It could ignite any time if the environment and conditions present it self again with different people, who might have both the backing of the public and a willing foreign power to put fire on another peaceful Somaliland. So, If I were you I would not goad or push Awdalites . Just as Somaliland will not be forced by a barrel of the gun to join the union, you will not be able to decide the faith of other communities without their consent. God forbid if real secession comes, that will be a declaration of war, Also, you keep distracting me about which Habro is more separatist than others. I did not mention "HY" or your other Sub group in my last tread. Do not worry, Saaxiib, no one will be associating you with galbeedi( Ma in la igu kaa ag sawiro ayaad ka cabsanay saa). during Rayaale regime, the east Burco guys were always accused of pro-Somalia. The Somali Shilling was the currency in Burco and everyone was expected to abandon Somaliland if Siilaanyo lost the election. I do mention this sometimes to one of my friends from east Burco, and he will jump and say " waar weligayaba gadhkaanu haynay oo dhinacaa waan ku adkeyn", the truth is always hard to swallow. So, let the record indicate that Oodweyne and his town are die hard landers. As for your "Djibouti, or Somaliland may begun to develop some kind of a “nativist itch” , I do believe the migration will be southward rather the north bound. Hence, before we discus a confederation or federal union, both Somalia and Somaliland must establish rule of law, bring lasting peace, feed their people and then sit down. Only Then will the imaginations Tallabo talking about will develop. do believe today Somaliland is more fragile than we think, and for the last 25 years, Somaliland have never been challenged , never. I do talk people from Borama and even HArgeisa, and every time I challenge them , they would say , "Waar meesha waba ma yaalaane nabada yar ayuun baanu ku Ilaashanaynaa". I do agree . Nabada inoo ilaaliya Inta Kheyr kale Imaanayo. Finally, it all depends the environment and the conditions people find themselves. If peace comes from the south and Somali people intermingle , trade and feel harmony among themselves, it will be easy to talk.

In your earlier Scottish wannabe tread, you talked about "a toothless old lady sitting in dark room cursing the world as it pass her by outside of her window", I did ignore that label and decided to finish that debate since I had other fish to fry. now you event went further and went to the gutter ( Bulaacada) by comparing me even the worse kind of people. It is beneath me to drag women in this debate whether they are old, toothless or others who are unfortunate. I hope next time you will find a good soap and wash your moth before you get on the keyboard. The only logical point that I got from this long drivel is that the people are different than the politicians. You also agreed that the Somaliland elites are not different than most African leaders and would make a deal if the price is right. In Hargeisa they have exchanged their peace for war for a few shillings. On the other hand , I did not say that the people would sell their soul for money and join the union. I said , since they are fed up , an open debate about their future , featuring you and me you would loose. What does that mean?. It means that if we have to campaign for the heart and soul of the people in an open democratic debate. I am sure , you are going to loose. Here is why. You agreed with me that the Somaliland elites are corrupt , incompetent and selfish men who keep putting the people in vicious circle of never ending game . We all agree that they will never tell the truth or explain what the future holds for thousands of youths who are being shackled by false dream. No, let us talk to the people. I do believe the Somaliald public are much easier to convince about Somali union than the politicians without mentioning the gutter or women selling their body. The politician might take the money and then complicate things , or worse create wars or other evil things to keep the status quo. All the public needs is the truth and nothing but the Truth. If they are allowed to debate openly , their hearts could be won easily. Last week a journalist by the name Colow was arrested in Hargeisa airport by just celebrating the victory of the new president. They have to keep him in a dark room in order to keep the light out. In North Korea and former East Germany people were kept from leaving the communist nirvana. If they opened the door people would leave in droves and find out what is on the other sand. so, they used to shoot those who were trying to exit. In similar but different scale , if Authorities and politicians in Hargeisa allow open and democratic debate, the secessionist agenda will be exposed. People will talk about misappropriation of public funds, the budget, the hundreds of young men dying in the high seas, the 75% unemployment and all the ills of the system. I conclude that the people of somaliland will accept union without coercion and bribe, but genuine acceptance of reality and for the future, hence, they are much easier than the corrupt politician.

I do not know what happened either. I saw the last post by Oodweyne, but did not see any thing until late last night. Also as soon as I log, my computer slows down.. anyway... People are free to assume as they wish, but the fact is Baadiyow has unique prospective on some of these issue. Having met the guy made me a lot more aware and humble about the extend of the internal problems facing Somalia. He has personally witnessed the huge damage suffered by the Somali institutions and the way Somalis operate for the last two decades. The erosion of trust, accountability and transparency form the Somali public square is almost irreparable, yet all that bad experience he witnessed did not affect his human behavior. I have been wrong many times, but I do believe that Dr. Baadiyow is among the few good Somali men and women who could help repair the Mogadishu quagmire. He will be ethical, truthful and will be transparent if we Somalis were lucky enough to have him as our premier. He really explained the difficulty of establishing a credible institution. Look at Somaliland, after twenty years, there are no any functioning or credible institution. The mother of all institutions the parliament does not even have a mechanism to introduce bills and read through committees before voting. It did pass a draft bill that not even ratified by the other side. The ugly thing was that the parliament voted 145 to 1, that is a north Korean democracy where 99% of the vote is won by the dear great leader Siilaanyo. On the issue of negotiations , I thing he is correct to manage one job at the time. Before any Somali leader would sit down with Somaliland, he must put his house in order without ignoring major life altering events. A Somali leader who achieves peace and tranquility in South Central Somalia will have more intensive to push his agenda. He will be able to put more pressure having the support of the Somali people and the respect of the international community. I just found out last month that in 2010, Shariif Ahmed gave $3 million dollars to Ahmed Siilaanyo, to use for the presidential campaign of Somaliand. Siilaanyo promised Shariif to start negotiations and bi-lateral contacts refused by his predecessor Rayaale. After the election, Siilaanyo began the negotiations. The problem was they went no where. Mr.Oodweyne , I hope by now you realize that in these days , it is not even that difficult to convince somaliland as long as you have some meat. Baashe Morgan from Dubai, disbursed a very small amount of money and , by hook or crook, passed the Berbera base deal. Imagine , if a seventy years old grand father, member of Guurti , who had already retired and got nothing but his honor ,could sell his soul for $10,000 dollars , what do you expect from the unemployed politicians sitting Hotel Mansuur. The parliament and the Guurti will be taken care off, the business community will vote yes and for greater business opportunity, and what is left will be the poor public who are fed up with the system. If open debate happens and me any would square off to campaign for the opposite sides, I am sure you are going to loose. Talking aside , the whole thing depends what these hapless southern elites do to clean up Mogadishu and surrounding area. We all heard from the news that president Farmaajo visited the wounded in Medina hospital and announced $100,000 reward without even consulting or studying the consequences of a hundred grand in the hungry neighborhood of Mogadishu. Soon probably everyone will steal a car , put some explosive ordinance and claim the money. We will wait and see what Farmaajo does, but I do believe that eventually we the northern Somalis should go their and clean the house. This is the last chance for the southern elite to end the quagmire or else, the next election will be ,ABS " any body but southern".

Some of the other issues that slip from my notes or got deleeted from my keyboard are Somaliand and the Arab world. Dr. Baadiyow said , At this juncture, Soaliland should not be joining the union negotiation until the south is stabilize and the Al-shabaab insurgency eliminated. It will not do any good to immerse themselves in this unstable environment. Having said that , he also said , " The Somaliland people have reached a stage where they will be willing to accept an olive branch from the south, in fact the people have seen high unemployment, large number of youth dying in the high seas and no major infrastructure to create an opportunity". He continues , " the best way to get early traction and release the air from secession would be to appoint a prime minister from the SNM community, but knowing the mind of the southern politicians , they will not do that bold move" How reform and change will come to the Arab world, I asked him? he said, "we Somalis by far ahead of the gulf and other Arab countries, in fact, many of them will go through what we have went through for the last twenty years.". Traditionally , they always had bad leaders who do care about people, look at SISI, Mubaarak, Assad and others".

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is a decade long anarchy is finally going to end as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we dicided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is a decade long anarchy is finally going to end as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. When his motorcade passed Villa-Somalia and went to a Hotel near the hospital were the mentally ill was cared , the people in Kaaraan districts and other neighborhood wondred whether he is checking in that hospital ( Adeer ninkaan xaguu ka Aadilahaa Villa-Somalia Maanakobia ayuu aaday). Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we dicided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure . I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is a decade long anarchy is finally going to end as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. When his motorcade passed Villa-Somalia and went to a Hotel near the hospital were the mentally ill was cared , the people in Kaaraan districts and other neighborhood wondred whether he is checking in that hospital ( Adeer ninkaan xaguu ka Aadilahaa Villa-Somalia Maanakobia ayuu aaday). Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we dicided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is a decade long anarchy is finally going to end as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. When his motorcade passed Villa-Somalia and went to a Hotel near the hospital were the mentally ill was cared , the people in Kaaraan districts and other neighborhood wondred whether he is checking in that hospital ( Adeer ninkaan xaguu ka Aadilahaa Villa-Somalia Maanakobia ayuu aaday). Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we dicided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is a decade long anarchy is finally going to end as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. When his motorcade passed Villa-Somalia and went to a Hotel near the hospital were the mentally ill was cared , the people in Kaaraan districts and other neighborhood wondred whether he is checking in that hospital ( Adeer ninkaan xaguu ka Aadilahaa Villa-Somalia Maanakobia ayuu aaday). Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we dicided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

He is the first elected president in a decade, Somalis every where cheered this milestone that have not been seen for a decade. In fact , since the overthrow of the Somali civilian government by the army in 1969, it is the first democratic ballot by A Somali parliament, even though it"s members were selected in tribal power sharing scheme called 4.5. When he landed at the Mogadishu airport, hundreds of thousands of people, from all walks of life, descended to the streets of Mogadishu for celebration. The talk of the people is " a decade long anarchy is finally going to end" , as everyone expected. There are high hopes for the people who were yearning for rule of law and government. Folks, I am not talking about president Farmaajo, but the equally celebrated and welcomed presidency of the Carta government led by president C/qasim Salaad Hassan. When his motorcade passed Villa-Somalia and went to a Hotel near the hospital were the mentally ill was cared , the people in Kaaraan districts and other neighborhood wondered whether he is checking in that hospital ( Adeer ninkaan xaguu ka tagi lahaa Villa-Somalia Maanakobia ayuu aaday). Today, after 17 years of that failure, Somali parliament have elected a new president with high hopes and expectations. People across the country have welcomed this election as a milestone and change for the right direction. Emotions are a well known trait of the Somali culture , but this welcoming emotions of the new president seem to be genuine. So, we decided to put aside the early emotions and get in to the real business. in order to sort out the real issues facing the new president in the coming months , we did try to consult an experts mind who was not only one of the architects of the Carta government that failed 2000, but he is also a good observer who have witnessed many government failures and adventures in Somalia and in particular Mogadishu. Unlike many scholars who sit, evaluate and write from the ivory towers (Nin Daar Ku Jiraa Daruur Ma Arkee), Dr. C/raxman Baadiyow is one of the handful Somalis from the diaspora who went home , spent time and resources, and built a lasting institutions like the Mogadishu university. He traveled to Hargeisa, Boosaaso (set up a branch in Boosaaso), Hiiraan , Garoowe, Jubba, Djibouti and between. He is a pragmatic politician and academic who understood and studied both social , governance and political issues facing Somalia. He not only talked about the real issues, but went home and contributed in a meaningful way. I consider him a nation builder who risked life to alleviate ignorance and teach a new generation of Somalis in the dark days of Mogadishu. In a round table setting , me and another group of local Somalis , have sat down with Dr. Baadiyow to discuss the road ahead and the implications of the next few years for the new president. We discussed politics, regional geopolitics and some social issues. We all agreed that president Farmaajo is a populist who tapped with the huge disappointments the Somali people have felt with the out going government of Hassan Sheikh Mohamuud. There were many questions, but I will focus those concerning governance, institution building ,competence and region geopolitics. It will not be word by word or actual transcript ,but a summarized version of the conversation according to Galbeedi. Round Table: How about these public campaign promises of Somali presidential candidates promising to fix the nations problems in today's environment?. Baadiyow: First of all, the president can not do any thing by himself. He needs to outline his program and implement his well defines program. Traditionally, a president sings, modifies or rejects programs prepared by his technical team like Prime minister , ministers or public institutions. In order to achieve his goals he needs a competent team to organize and implement his agenda. RT: As you have seen in 2000, C/qasim failed despite the out pouring support from the Somalis, is there any parallel between him and Farmaajo? Baadiyow: when C/qasim landed in Mogadishu, the opposition was weak. We told him after he landed in Mogadishu, to go directly to Villa-Somalia, which was occupied by a few militia, instead he went straight to a Hotel near the old Mogadishu district. It was the first act of his failure. He started with a Hotel and finished with a Hotel. It was the first indications of his failure I wrote in this pages long ago about Muuse Suudi saying..Arreey Haday Bir noqotana waa ka leexahayaa, Haday Bac noqotana waa bujihaynaa(the bold are mine) First, it is clear the parliament have voted for change, but there is also another fact which clearly indicates that some of the vote was more likely against Hassan than for Farmaajo. Second , it will will be difficult to live up to these unattainable expectations without serious work and cooperating efforts by all Somalis. Some times , those same people who are showing their emotional support, will be the first to demand his ouster, if he does not deliver. Finally, the best indications of the failures of Somali presidents are: they always choose someone who is less competent of himself in terms experience, ability, competence, stature and leadership ( mar walba waxay soo urursadaan cid iyaga ka hoosaysa). They do not want someone who is more competent or would shine brighter than them and take the spotlight. leaders talk about building the army, police, public service, tax collection and so on, but these things can be built or organized by competent state institutions not pronouncements or trusted individuals(government is a modern institution, and it needs highly trained and competent people to implement it;s agenda( hebel lacagta ciidanka ha qaado waa ni wanaagsane iyo wax la mida ma shaqaynayso) bold is mine. Farmaajo can only succeed if the men and women he chooses to implement his program are more capable and competent than himself. He can choose his own office aides, but those who would serve and build the government institutions must be chosen by competence and merit. RT: what is the first task of the president? Baadiyow: he must choose a competent prime minster and give him the freedom to pick his cabinet and do his job. For the last eight years or so , a president from the Mogadishu area , usually picks a premier from the "D block" and quickly a triangle forms. The three angels of the triangle are the president, the Mogadishu business community and the prime minister. In order to set his agenda and isolate the premier, the president more than often, side steps the premier and connects his agenda with businessmen while ignoring the premier totally. If the premier tries to reassert his role and confronts the president, he is thrown out of the office with help of the business oligarchs and the parliament. That arm restringing continues and all important issues of the state is neglected. Jug meeshaada joog. He must show reconciliation and good will through out the country. Good leaders bring harmony and reconciliation after civil wars or elections that divide the people. He must build strong and lasting institutions , and finally , must be transparent and fight corruption within the government and the system. RT: what are the wrong steps that could hasten his failure? Baadiyow: There are reports that the failed group of former governments, including Shariif Ahmed and even some members of the last government are trying to be the inner circle that are trying to direct his agenda, if that is the case, expect gridlock and competing loyalties. He was elected to bring change and usher a new era , but if he keeps the company of the old guard while giving a lip service for change, the euphoria of the public could disappear quickly. RT: would you be willing to be the premier if the president asks you? Baadiyow: of course, if the duty calls , serve , I must. Having said that , I would not be someone who would accept interference, corruption and quarrel. I will clearly tell the president that " I will serve and do a competent work and would not tolerate interference( Si cad ayaan ugu sheegi in uu hawshayda ii daayo, haddii kale imikaba aynu kala joona, ka dibna dariiqa mustaqiimka ayeynu qaadi). RT: there is a lot of talk among Somalis about the presence of the foreign troops in the country and how to build a national army. What would happen if the foreign troops leave today?. Baadiyow: if these forces leave the country today, Al-shabaab will take over immediately. The withdrawal has to be gradual and must be coordinated. The Somali National Army must be rebuilt and equipped, and only competent and credible institutions can achieve that. As we speak we are a long way from the point. RT: how can the Somali state and people remove itself from the entanglement of the competing regional powers?, and what about Ethiopia? Baadiyow: Ethipia already had realized that it can not occupy or control Somalia, and we Somalis can not continue the constant war of fighting them. Now , mutually , we must find ways to co-exist peacefully. The issue of Al-shabaab and security worries of the region is genuine and must be considers as such, so countries like Djibouti, Ethiopia and others in the region, believe Somalia is the place to stop and defeat Al-shabaab before it became a big regional danger and crosses their borders . Having said that, it is the Somali federal leadership and their regional allies who introduced Ethiopia and others to Somalia and would like to continue for different reasons . A leader must govern on the consent of the people and implement their legitimate demands. If you rely on the support of the public , they will in return demand justice, transparency, development and security. Leaders who can not deliver the public demand whether by incompetence or greed , usually find alternative sources of power to keep the in power. That is why Hassan decided to rely on them in his final efforts to keep power. In fact, the idea of relying to foreign powers to keep the power was even used by Siyaad Barre himself. In 1987, rather than make a deal and reconcile with the Somali tribal insurgents against his government and keep out the Ethiopian influence , he made a deal with MIngestu Hailemariam in order to keep his power and eliminate the guerrilla movement. Mingestu did not stop the support of insurgents which eventually destroyed the country. The issue is legitimate leaders do not need the support of others to rule among their people. Finally , the 30 million Somalis in this region of horn of Africa must find peace prosperity and trade with hundred million Ethiopians who are 60% Muslim and thrive. We must build our country and find ways to co-exist peacefully with our neighbors. A democratic and competent Somalia does not anyone to keep it save, but it's own army and people. I do not blame others for our weakness and inability to defeat terrorism and build institutions. TR: how about the gulf countries and Egypt? Baadiyow: Egypt have been using the Somali blood for a while. There are clear facts that indicate Egypt was one of the main countries that forced Somalia to wage the war of 1977. Because of the Nile issues, they have being pushing as to war for a long time. It was Gemal Abdel Nasser who convened the 1964, Cairo agreement which made the colonial borders permanent, yet they still kept pushing as for war behind the scene. If we have to wage war and shed blood, it must be done by our own decision, not by the proxy efforts of others. Why would we deal with leaders like C/caziiz SISI who is murdering his own people. In my opinion , UAE ( united Arab Emirate) is waging a business war. They are playing different games but the crest of their interest is mostly business. When they supported SISI of Egeypt, they usually claim of their desire to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, but they were against the idea of Mursi and Egypt making Sinai a free port zone which could attract business around the world. With hundred million people and the tourism culture , Dubai and the frictional desert kingdom could loose both business and competition. They have been fighting with Djibouti , they destroyed Aden and many ports in the region. Their ultimate goal is to keep their business interest and eliminate competition( They do not produce any thing and anyone with nice ports and beeches can set up a free port..bold emphasis are mine). So The Somali state must look it's interest. The middle east is in big trouble and things could get ugly. Iran itself is in turmoil. There is a battle between the moderates and the extremists who are waging wars in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and many other places. The moderates went the hardliners to leave Iran , fight these wars and eventually loose, so they could take the helm. They have also a large ethnic minorities that could explode any time. On the issue of Berbera, that port could thrive and succeed without the gulf money. RT: how about corruption in the system and how to eliminate. Baadiyow: fighting corruption and showing transparency are among the top issues facing every Somali leader. There is a lot of resources within the country. The Telecom companies in Mogadishu alone could provide the government millions of dollars revenues if collected properly. If you show the public transparency and hard work , they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the greater good. TR: How about the Somali regional government and their efforts to build government institutions and deliver services to people? Baadiyow:. The regional governments came from the international efforts to fix the Somali problems and force some form of regional institutions in the local level. Local people were expecting services and institutions, while some are better than others most have became a tool carried by the leader in his bag. Look at the South West regional state, it became a one man institution. If there is parliament leadership Shariif Hassan will be the one deciding, if there is a regional president, he will lead and only him, and finally, if there is presidential candidate from that region it will Shariif Hassan but no one else It reduced the whole concept of the regional state to one man. The rest are not that much different. Soon people will be demanding transparency and service delivery. I do believe that should be serving the needs of the people not the leaders. few years ago , with groups of politicians , I went to Kismaayo to avert the tribal issues of 1991 from rearing it's ugly head again and taking the community apart. . RT: How about Somaliland and their apparent dysfunction and other issues. Baadiyo: First of all unless the problems of the south are sorted out security wise and other issues in Mogadishu, it is a premature to discuss the union. It will futile for Somaliland to throw itself in unstable place were Al-shabaab insurgency is active in many parts of the country. As a peaceful place, you do not immerse in a conflict zone. Having said , I think the people of Somalaind have reached a stage where in the near future for the south to extend an olive branch. Unemployment are at the highest levels, there are no apparent developments that lift the economy and the people are fed up of the constant quarrel that could bring bad things. The Somali government could take huge steps by appointing a prime minister from the north which could change the whole political landscape, but I do not think that will happen. The conflict with the Somaliland elite not the people had started after the union of 1960, and it has taken different shapes throughout the years. I think a genuine reconciliation from the Somali leadership of both sides should repair those wounds. Rt: let us discuss some of the social issues . I do believe the Islamic movements and leaders have shown to be a weak link, that brought nothing but hardship to the people, so do you think that we must avoid the so called " Wadaad"? Baadiyow: I do agree the idea of labeling people as " Wadaad" or oher names. I would like the Somali people being addressed as a citizen (Muwaadin Soomaaliyeed) without any names. Throughout the years we have seen people claim as " Wadaad" and then trying to run away the label for political expediency. Look at Hassan Sheikh, he was a member of the non violent movement Islaax, and in 2006, joined the Islamic courts and became those waging the war against The Ethiopian supported government. Now after he won the office, he became the closet leader of the Ethiopian government in order to stay in power, doing exactly the opposite of what he did when he was " the Wadaad". These kind of people are opportunists who could wear any shirt. RT: how about the large number of Somali women in the parliament? Baadiyow: Iy is a good step taken forward. There is no Quraanic or Hadith tradition that could deny women for position of leadership. If you compare where we were in Carta two decades ago , it is a good progress. With time there will be more changes in favor of women's role. There was this story about a Somali elder who after he has been asked to nominate a women to parliament, and he said , I would not be answering in the here after about a woman in the parliament (Adeer Qiyaamaha Bilcan ayuu Baarlamaan geeyey la i dhihi maayo). With education and time a lot will change. RT: would you talk about social norms and the weakness of the public institutions. Baadiyow: there is a huge difference between personal responsiblitis and social responsiblities. In the western societies, usually they do not focus on the individual level or his personality, what they emphasis is the larger socitial good of the public, like: do not steal, damage property, respect others and don not break the law ans so on. That is why the things the public share are working. On the other hand we we focus the person , how good that person is , or how is honest , decent and God fearing which are all good human traits, but what counts is what you contribute in the larger society. If you good that will serve you, your family or your here after, but what also counts are how you behave in public office, or issues that you share with others ( hadaad qof wanaagsan tahay oo wanaagaaga aad gurigaaga iyo shaqsiydaada la joogta aday kuu gaar tahay, laakiin mushtamaca wanaagiisa iyo waxa dadka idinka dhexeeya sida aad u gudato ayaa umdda wax ka bedelaya, hebel waa nin fiican oo tukada oo edeb leh , wanaagaaga gurigaaga la joojag, aniga waxa wax ii taraysa sida aad hawsha ummadda ka dhaxaysa u gudanayso). If we are individually good by a lager numbers, why things that we share publicly are not working or in bad shape?, because rather focus on the social responsibility of the public at large, we are focus on personal levels, and most of the nations that focus on that issue have weak public institutions and systems. When we started Mogadishu university, we asked the students to pay a small amount of money to cover for the teachers, utilities and other services. We hired good and respected professors and told them that what ever these students could afford will cover your salary, so you must hold on your side of the bargain to show up o time and teach. After while, some of the most respected professors, even some Islamic scholars keep showing up late or even missing classes , yet they did not know that they were earning illegal money( xaaraan in ay cunayaan oo wiilkii lacagta bixiyey aysan class kii imanayn ma garanayaan). So ,after while we took steps to deduct money every time they miss a class. Initially they were shocked ,but things got better. While these people were honorable and good individually, they lacked the larger societal responsibility, so we must put emphasis the larger social responsibilities than the individual ones. That is the summarized version of the conversation. If there is any question we will pass to Dr. Baadiyow.

This guy Dahir Calasow is the worst incarnation of the Somali race. Siyaad Mohamed Shire was not a minister, general or policy maker. He was one of the staff's of the prime minister Cali Geedi. How can a mere office aide would murder or lead the C/laahi Yusuf government. Lately , he was a counselor officer in Nairobi and Jeddah. He has some experience running the office. He is appointed as chief protocol officer by Farmaajo. It is a simple job. Calasow is sewing hatred and distrust among his community and Unaka" which fought deadly battles in early nineties. We all assume that conflict was in the past and people are looking ahead of the future. We should stay away from this kind of people who insight or created war from nothing.

In his early days, like most people , I was accepting some shake up of the system, but this man is just disrupted and chaos.The United Nations is usually a rich man's club, and have not done much for the developing nations. It must be reformed, but I believe Trump intends to push the UN in his own way. He will only make them worse. On the issue of Palestine, to be correct, he did not say that he believes " one state solution", but actually said , " I will agree one or two state , wherever both of them agree. By the way there were some Palestinians who always believed that one state , democratic and multi ethnic state that must be shared by both. Edward Said was on of them. Actually, the two state solutions were an idea advocated by the Jewish national leadership and their American friends. They were afraid that in the long run the 3 million Palestinians could increase and undermine the Jewish character of Israel, so the deal was to arrange two states side by side. Trump could not change or negate the two state solutions. He does not lead the foreign policy of the nation. Every thing he campaigned was refuted publicly by his own cabinets or, he , himself back tracked whether is is NATO, Russia, settlement and many things. The man is narcissistic , how can do any work while watching TV hours every day and responding with his displeasure on twitter. You know what , he may even quit after while. As the leader of the U.S, he needs to read, analyze and work 12 hours or more. In his former job, most of the real state transaction are done by lawyers and been counter accountants , although he declared bankruptcy which means he never listened his accountants. Within three weeks , he already took three vacation in his Florida home, to play golf. As months go , he will be weakened . How long he will be keep insulting the media and those who disagree with him.

Since the republicans are controlling both houses of congress , the chances of early impeachment has to wait until the mid term election of 2018. In the meantime the captain of the titanic keep speaking not only false but easily verifiable lie. Today he said , his electoral victory was the largest since Ronald Reagan. When asked about the false statement , he said, "someone just gave me this information". Electoral numbers for the last 37 years. Donald Trump 2016 306 Barack Obama 2012 332 Barack Obama 2008 365 BILL Clinton 1996 379 George Bush Sr, 1984 426 As you can see, the guy is out of touch. We will keep updating this tread until impeachment 2019.

In late January, the state department told Trump through his counsel that Gen. Flynn did not disclose the truth about his Russian meeting. He was latter told about the investigations. In order to confuse people distract the media, he signed the so called Muslim ban without even consulting to the justice department, state department or the homeland security. He was creating smoke screen to divert the attention. He consulted a young punk called Steve Miller and the failed former White supremacist blogger named Steve Bannon. Together, they drafted an executive order to ban Muslims without checking if it was legal or not. Well, Gen. Flynn must tell the truth to avoid being locked (he campaigned with Trump calling that Hillary should be locked for mishandling classified email).He must expose the conversation he had with Trump about Russian sanctions. Watergate started just like this: When did the president knew this and who told him?. The con man is in trouble.

The nut cases and crazy ones following Trump throughout the camoaign were eliminated early, but somehow Gen. Flynn ended up as the national security adviser. If you remember, there were few nut cases rejected by Trump ,the likes of Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee, rick Santorum and few others. It seems the republican party is slowly taking over the white house. Every thing is set for Mike Pence. in fact he did recommend most of the cabinets. The Texas boys, the oil barons and the Bushes got Rex Tilerson and Rick perry while other important ones are career military guys. Soon Steve Bannon and other lunatics will be out. This week the CIA denied giving clearance to an aide to Flynn. well, it is less than a month and some of the lies were refuted by the justice. The lunatic General assured the Russians about break of the sanctions and then lied. I though Trump would have finished at least until 2019, but the noose is already tightening.