The First Year of Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud’s Presidency

[xiinfaniin]

Ismail Ali Ismail (Geeldoon)

September 11, 2013

 

 

Mr. Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud was elected a year ago as the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia upon the lapse of a long ‘Transitional Period’. He defeated the incumbent Sheikh Sharief Sheikh Ahmed fairly and squarely in a transparent electoral process. Although the independence, sovereignty, political unity and territorial integrity of Somalia were reaffirmed over and over again in all international fora discussing the Somali situation, the transitional governments were never recognized by the West. But this changed, almost overnight, when the transitional period ended, Parliament was reconstituted through a democratic process, the President was elected in open, free and fair manner and a regular, fully mandated government came into being.

 

Hassan_MohamudIn mid-January this year President Hassan paid a visit to the United States and met Mrs. Clinton (then Secretary of State) as well as President Obama and some congressional members. There and then it was announced that the US would deal with Somalia as ‘a sovereign state’ and would normalize its relations with it. He also delivered a lecture on “The Future of Good Governance in Somalia” at the Center for Strategic and International studies” in Washington, D.C. His performance during the visit was good beyond expectation, but the recognition was due in large part to the democratic and open process that took place on Somali soil for the first time since the disappearance of the State in 1991, and brought him to power. Not surprisingly, US recognition opened a Pandora’s box of other recognitions.

 

Despite the proclaimed end of the very long “Transitional Period” Somalia is in fact still in transition: its constitution is yet being discussed and subject to controversy; the lower house of parliament, though constituted, has not been elected by universal adult suffrage; the upper house is yet to be formed; there are no political parties; there are only two constituent states (Puntland and Jubaland) to the federation; ‘Somaliland’ is still on the sidelines, pending its inevitable cessation of secession; there is no national army to speak of (AMISOM is still there); the government’s actual territorial jurisdiction is severely circumscribed; there are only the shadows of institutions desperately trying to come back to life; dependency on external resources is so high that it militates against the country’s sovereignty; and, above all, the Shabaab are still well and active. The road to normalcy, in these unenviable circumstances, is long, rough and rugged with many large and small potholes as well as bumps. Sane and sober Somalis are aware of this.

 

Surely, the problems confronting the country under the leadership of President Hassan are both numerous and enormous. The Government is indeed like a diffident, resourceless midget facing an aggressive giant rudely awakened by a nasty civil war – a David, if you like, facing Goliath (Daa’uud iyo Gaaluut). But this aggressive giant, unlike Goliath, has many powerful tentacles with such different names as ‘clannism’, ‘disunity and division’, ‘abject poverty’, ‘disease’, ‘illiteracy’ and ‘instability’. Yet, the job of the Government is to cut each one of these tentacles and defeat the giant.

[xiinfaniin]

Of course, no government can cut all of them off in one strike, even if the wherewithal is abundantly available. The giant, however, can be reduced to a manageable size by attrition. To do this, the Government needs two things more than anything else: strategy and credibility. It needs a strategy of fighting; and it needs credibility (which may accrue from strategy) for people to believe in what it is doing, and to support it. By ‘Government’ I mean the Prime Minister (who is its acknowledged head) and his cabinet, not the President (who is the Head of State, not of Government). Yet, we speak in Somalia of the ‘Government of Hassan Sheikh’, (Dowladda Xasan Shiikh), not of Abdi Farah Shirdon. However, it is very important to make the distinction between ‘Government’ and ‘State’ in order to have and maintain a healthy polity.

 

The confusion is due in large measure to the way the President has been acting as an executive president rather than the ceremonial one he is supposed to be under the Constitution. In an article on President Hassan’s visit to the US last year, I stated:

 

“ At his current age (the right age for prime minister) the President is youthful (he actually looks younger than his age) and seems fit as a fiddle. With these personal attributes, however, lurks the danger that he might find it irresistible to overstep the confines of his ceremonial functions and meddle in cabinet affairs”. (Emphasis added)

 

Alas, the President has succumbed to the temptation of acting as an executive president. He has been too visible: he has led nearly all delegations to other countries and international conferences on substantive matters; it is on open secret that he makes appointments to high-level political and civil service positions; and he has been in the thick of controversies respecting the establishment of new constituent states, including the long and debilitating imbroglio of Jubaland State whose formation turned out to be a Sisyphean task. By acting as an executive president in contravention of the constitution and portraying his strong personality, the President has been unfair, not only to the country, the prime minister, the cabinet but also to himself by taking –unduly and imprudently – the heavy burdens of the State and the Government upon his shoulders.

 

An executive president is elected by the whole country, not by a few hundred parliamentarians. He has extensive powers owing to having been elected nationally, and combines therefore the functions of Head of State and Head of Government. Conversely, a president elected by the legislature, as was President Hassan, is essentially ceremonial (Italy, India, and Israel are but few examples) and acts, not like a politician in the thick of controversies, but like a statesman and a father figure who breaks deadlocks rather than create them. That is the sort of president envisaged in our Constitution. I am not saying here that because he is ceremonial he should not give the benefit of his ideas, his experience and his wisdom to the country. He is in fact required to do so. But he should do so in a manner that guides and bolsters, not oversteps, the government. Else, there will be confusion and a paralyzing struggle, as we have seen with his pedecessors, between him and the Prime Minister.

[xiinfaniin]

However, we are in a peculiar situation between now and 2016 when general elections are scheduled to be held, and when there will be, hopefully, political parties to contest them. Then the leader of the majority party, if there is one, will, by controlling Parliament, more or less play a decisive role in choosing the president – unless he himself wants to retire to the presidency. In the interim, we will, perforce, continue to have a prime minister who is not backed by a parliamentary party but, for all intents and purposes, serves at the pleasure of the president to whom he owes, first and foremost, his premiership. And, Parliament being what is, the anomaly of having a president who is constitutionally ceremonial but functionally executive yet not accountable to Parliament, and a Prime Minister and Cabinet who function under his shadow and are nevertheless answerable to Parliament, will stay with us until the country steps into the new era of party politics. I am highly gratified that in a speech about two days ago President Hassan vowed that elections would be held as planned in 2016 and that he, the Government and Parliament would not seek an extension to their mandates under the pretext of necessary preparations falling behind schedule.

 

It is not too late for President Hassan to change course and set the tone for a healthy polity and good governance, which are essential for the stability of the country. He has only finished one year of his four-year term. We have been hearing for the last few months that a cabinet reshuffle was in the offing and the ministries would be nearly doubled. This is welcome development because there has been criticism that the ministries were too few and too weak to shoulder the heavy responsibilities assigned to them. Many of the ministers have neither government nor political experience, and they lack the benefit of a trained civil service and a developed private sector on which to draw. There are educated Somalis all over the world who should be tapped as consultants/experts or recruited into the civil service and trained for high-level positions. I agree with General Ulysses Grant, former President of the United States, that “No personal consideration should stand in the way of performing a public duty”. While it is true that the main deterring obstacle to serving in Mogadishu is the rapidly deteriorating security situation, there are other opportunities for service elsewhere in the country. However, nowhere else is the need for national service in the public sector more pressing now than in Mogadishu where the national government resides and national policies emanate from.

 

To be credible and effective in the remainder of his term President Hassan has to step back from the limelight, which he has so far monopolized. He should let the Prime Minister, the cabinet, and the Parliament carry out their responsibilities in the public eye. People should see all the institutions of the country work, as they should. There have been press reports that the delay in finalizing the impending cabinet reshuffle is due to a deadlock in the haggling among the President, the Speaker and Prime Minister, each of whom wants certain individuals to be appointed to cabinet positions. Speakers in the recent past have been part of the paralyzing problems we have seen, and were never part of any solution. If the current Speaker who, unlike his predecessors, has behind him long government experience, long diaspora experience, academic experience (and experience is a function of age) and a high level of education is sidestepping the oversight responsibility of his institution in order to bargain for one or two ministerial posts and, probably, other top appointments, it will be difficult to have an accountable government. The charge has already been made by at least one Member of Parliament that the functions of the legislative and executive branches seem to have been enmeshed. It will be difficult for Parliament to take the Government to task if its Speaker is compromising his position by entering into deals with the President and/or the Prime Minister. Surely, there is something here that cries out for rectification in the interest of ensuring effective checks and balances.

[Alpha Blondy]

Xinny,

 

the 2nd and 3rd post are part of same article or your rebuttals?

 

are you responding to your own article, abti?

[xiinfaniin]

Alpha, no this is all part of the same article

 

I was distracted as I was posting the article. I share Mr. Geeldoon's sentiment. Hassan Sheekh proved to be a false dawn. Even on Jubbaland settlements, his efforts are mere half measures ---it will not hold for him.

[Khadafi]

xiinfaniin;978121 wrote:

President Hassan, is essentially ceremonial (Italy, India, and Israel are but few examples) and acts, not like a politician in the thick of controversies, but like a statesman and a father figure who breaks deadlocks rather than create them. That is the sort of president envisaged in our Constitution. .

The Somali constitution clearly says that the elected president has the right fire/appoint the prime minister. I I dont know how the author of the article made that into ceremonial role. Isreali/Indian presedency can not fire/appoint the prime-ministers or head of governments. In conclusion, Xassan Sh Maxamud is the president of Somalia and the one whom primary responsibility rests upon.

[xiinfaniin]

Khadafi,

You made a valid point. I believe the president to be the executive because he is the one elected. The author seems to think differently.

[Khadafi]

xiinfaniin;978186 wrote:

Khadafi,

You made a valid point. I believe the president to be the executive because he is the one elected. The author seems to think differently.

 

Xiin, the author has previously written good analyses of the political reality in Somalia. I suspect though that this mistake is an intentional error. The Jubba-affair and the surprising political deal that Hassan Sh Maxamud came up has confused and divided the previous staunch opposition. The author seems to be in that category.

 

Jubba waa laga tagay yaakhay shimee laga hadlaa the ******* ot Baraawe and Marka and some parts of Mogadishu xiinow. It's not acceptable that HAG politician that originates from Galgadud has been appointed as a mayor for Baraawe.. What happened to the historical original city-based communities. Xaqoodo ha laga hadlo, That's the mutual interest between the groups in Jubba and me!.

[malistar2012]

To be credible and effective in the remainder of his term President Hassan has to step back from the limelight, which he has so far monopolized. He should let the Prime Minister, the cabinet, and the Parliament carry out their responsibilities in the public eye. People should see all the institutions of the country work, as they should. There have been press reports that the delay in finalizing the impending cabinet reshuffle is due to a deadlock in the haggling among the President, the Speaker and Prime Minister, each of whom wants certain individuals to be appointed to cabinet positions. Speakers

This dude is biased and tribal mind just reading his article you can sense and smell the garbage coming out if his mouth, Prime Minister, the cabinet, and the Parliament are carrying out their responsibilities in the public eye .

 

 

The Minister of Transportation and Information Abdullahi Elmoge Hirsi is doing a wonderful job for the first time in 23 years he manage to open the Somali Post office he also has list of of the achievement , currently Working on Somali Airline.

 

Minister of defense is also doing his job Training camps across Somalia are open. accomplish to train many Somali troops around world and currently working on getting the big weapons

 

Minister of Education is doing excellent job currently working on bringing one million kids back to school .

 

Minister of Finance was the architect behind New deal compact the man travel the entire Somalia put together pact .

 

 

The Interior Minister is working on creating strong security force - Police - spies and etc . He also manage to Keep Dahir Aweys in jail , Solved some tribal dispute and etc .

 

 

This Government Manage to hold to 3 successful National Conference in the Nation Capital , Due their hard working and ethic EU and the IC recognized their effort and are willingly to give them 2.8 billion $.

[Carafaat]

Khadafi;978190 wrote:

Xiin, the author has previously written good analyses of the political reality in Somalia. I suspect though that this mistake is an intentional error. The Jubba-affair and the

surprising political deal

that Hassan Sh Maxamud came up has confused and divided the previous staunch opposition. The author seems to be in that category.

 

Jubba waa laga tagay yaakhay

shimee

laga hadlaa the ******* ot

Baraawe and Marka and some parts of Mogadishu xiinow.

It's not acceptable that HAG politician that originates from Galgadud has been appointed as a mayor for Baraawe.. What happened to the historical original city-based communities.

Xaqoodo ha laga hadlo,

That's the mutual interest between the groups in Jubba and me!

.

Are you serieuz?.They appointed a HAG Mayor for Barawe?

[xiinfaniin]

First off, this is a great piece, the author is a known expert on matters of governance . Although his views on the president's powers is bit different than mine, I still think his overall assessment on Hassan Sheekh's one year tenure is right on point.

[Tallaabo]

Carafaat;978197 wrote:

Are you serieuz?.They appointed a HAG Mayor for Barawe?

Very dirty politics!!

[Saalax]

Baraawe isn't even liberated yet.

[Khadafi]

Saalax;978297 wrote:

Baraawe isn't even liberated yet.

That does not have to mean that my scenario from hell will not take place,

[Saalax]

Well if you don't resist the metal scrap looters like the locals of Marka did, then it will properly happen.