The Wisdom in the Somaliland GUURTI House

[Jacaylbaro]

Toronto Canada – From the prospect view of Somaliland Diaspora; every year has its ups and downs and the advice is to look forward in the years to come. Let it be known that the Somaliland people in the country and outside fully support the present House of Elders (Guurti) more than….. To barrow a sentence from Coffee Shop Opinion Leaders in their commentary last week, the individuals with foreign passports and with their tribal tools shouldn’t lead chaos to the hard working people of Somaliland.

 

The Chairman of Somaliland Guurti House is not only a top politician but with history of talent and vision for his native land from Lao’adow to Armo and from Berbera to Wajaley and he worn the heart and the soul of Somaliland people where-ever they live.

 

Somaliland has a long journey that started when Somaliland born military officers put their helmets in 1962 to reject the un-rectified union with Somalia. Followed by others in step-by-step until 1991 when people of Somaliland gathered in Burao of Togdher Region and declared the Somaliland Republic and followed by Borama Constitutional Conference.

 

The successors have left no stone be unturned and the present Somaliland government has successfully completed its last democratization and the first 82 parliamentarians were elected by the people rightly. The Somaliland people also in support of the courageous and heroic decision of the Somaliland President to keep aside the parliamentarian tribal politics and put the interest of the country ahead of everything else by completely put in action the seven members of Somaliland Election Commissioners

 

The distributions of seats were based on historical events and not present regional population distribution. The wisdom of Somaliland Guurti members, political leaders, political scientists, academicians, think tanks in the country and in the Diaspora were all agreed to implement along with this temporary method and correct it in later times.

 

The Somaliland political system is a combination of that of USA and British system. The Somaliland like USA has presidential, parliament and judiciary system but nominated senators (Gurti) likes that of Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and some of other Anglophones.

 

Immediately after the elected MPs were sworn in a friction appeared between the senators (Guurti) and the elected parliament and each has claimed how it sees the political correctness of Somaliland. The Somaliland people regretted the election of present parliamentarians and under this situation may not last long.

 

The MPs expressed a desire to the senate (Guurti) reformed and calling the institution “questionable”. However, the MPs were vague on how reform should be achieved, saying they would prefer to see it elected rather than appointed. Now the people of Somaliland realized without the present Guurti (Somaliland House of Elders) would have been taken over by a group (the minority tribal minded in Somaliland Parliamentarians) whose trust loyalty in Mogadishu.

 

The debates started in Somaliland and in the Diaspora are critical towards an elected senate, saying that once elected, the senate will “assume their full role, instead of the moderation they are today”. There is nothing in Somaliland constitution to prepare us for a statement between the two chambers. We don’t have this, so why put sled in this situation.

 

Senate reforms would not work alone unless we re-open the constitution. The Somaliland people are not prepared to open constitution on just one issue. In the case the constitution re-opened you have to prepare the Pandora box with lot of issues to come out. The imbalances of regional seats distribution, to open the constitutionalized three political parties, the Somaliland citizenship whether owned by tribes when the British left 1960 or excluded Somlilanders live outside the Somaliland boundaries, and lack of democratic participation in the east Regions and lot of other issues. The imbalances are included some members in parliament have been elected with few hundreds of votes while others are elected ten thousand or so.

 

As the minister of finance presented his 30-million budget, has declared how the Third World Countries are supported from outside and Somaliland has survived with all these years without dime from wealthy nations. Somaliland is on mission and it was planned to keep lid all sensitive issues until we achieve settlement and score the sovereignty goal. But the parliamentarians rejected the efforts of the Minister of Finance and changed the budget-numbers which is beyond their powers (ignorance) and work of any modern parliament.

 

We all know the senate should be more accountable, more credible and more democratic. But it’s not good for Somaliland to have elected senate as long as we don’t have a change of the number of senators per region. The elected senate must have the will and power of elected people and that may inflame an endless debate and influence our competence to achieve the sovereign struggle. Some of us are open to the idea of limited-duration senate (Gurti) appointment, because that would make it easier to appoint younger people to the upper house. Let us debate how the appointment should be made who is rightfully the power to appoint the senators, the age and term in the office.

 

A full makeover of the powers of the senate and the method of appointing its members would require a full-blown of constitutional amendment (constitutional battleground). Some Somalilanders have no problem with moving toward an American-style senate, but added that if senators are to be elected must have real powers, that should be outlined with a constitutional change.

 

If you’re going to start tinkering with something so fundamental with a constitutional dimension to it, then you’ve got to open the whole complex debate and do it properly and not fiddle on the periphery of it. The present Senate Members will stay and remain in office unless we come out with alternative to replace them.

 

 

 

 

 

Hassan Abtidon