Somalia: Puntland's Failure under Gaas Leadership

GAROWE, Puntland - Puntland is a semi-antimouse region in Somalia that control more comprehensive and large part of the country. This region is located in northeast Somalia. On Jan 8.2014, Puntland parliament elected Abdiwali Gaas as the new president and the leader of Puntland.

Many scholars and Somali intellectuals welcomed him, and their expectation was too high since he has a Ph.D. in economics and development, educated from the world’s best schools.

His slogan was to fight corruption and unemployment, fight extremism, build government institutions, reconciliation between Puntland clan elders and tribes, bring back all territories of Puntland but all the above mentioned had been failed the region has had recorded one of the worst time and insecurity had been raised to the highest level. Al-Shabab had captured first-time lands in Puntland.

Many senior commanders had been killed. Members of Puntland parliament, senior security leaders, ING workers, civil servants, clan elders and peacemakers had been murdered in Puntland by unknown gunmen and Al-Shabab respectively.

In March.2014, Jama Afguduud; Senior Puntland commander operating in Galgala was killed near the road to Bosaso, and Alshabab claimed responsibility. The government only condemn those who killed him but did not go ahead to search for them and bring them to justice.

The beginning of 2015 Said Lugay; a Member of Parliament was shot in Galkaio, and he was the closest ally to the president, but nobody managed to capture the attackers, and the investigation is still going although Alshabab claimed responsibility.

In 2014, two UN international staff was shot in Galkaio international airport, and both of them died at the scene, but the government failed to produce any reports about the killings.

In April 2015, Unicef camp in Garowe was attacked by Al-Shabab, and dozens were killed including foreign individuals, while others were wounded, but the government only condemned the attack.

Galkaio the second largest city in Puntland had become the epicenter of terrorist attacks at will and there was fighting between Gal-Mudug and Puntland where hundreds of people were killed, others wounded while more than 300,000 were displaced; humanitarian, and relief organizations reported. Beside that, in March 2016 more than 600 Al-Shabab fighters captured coast and the mainland in Puntland close to the Ayl, Garacad, Suuj, Garmaal and remote areas.

President Gaas was outside the country, and some sources claimed his phone was off for a week. In March 2017, Farah Abdikadir Botan, Member of parliament was critically wounded in Galkaio, and unfortunately, he passed away in Nairobi Hospital, Kenya. June 2017 Ali Ibrahim Ali known as ''MagSafe’’ a senior police official has been killed in Galkaio, and nobody was claimed, and the government has failed to release any detailed report.

June 2017, 50 soldiers had been killed during a un-expected raid in a military camp in Af-our in a small village about 70 km south west of Bosaso. More than hundreds of community members at all levels have been killed in Puntland, and the killings are still going on. Police in the cities are ineffective; undercover secret service is not working.

The administration has failed to maintain law and order in Puntland cities and villages. Gaas is one of the worst leaders Puntland have ever had, he lies to the Public, he is a very corrupt man, and he misuses the income of Puntland.

Some sources have confirmed that he bought a luxury house in Virginia USA. This is to mean that he does not have the interest of the Somali people at heart; rather he has his private agenda running alongside the Somalia administration.

Puntland parliament members are appointed by clan elders that are representing their major clans. They are 66 in number, and most of them are illiterate, nor do they have any experience in government institutions and that is why they have failed to protect the rights of their fellow Puntland residents. These people are corrupt who take their interests first.

There is neither accountability nor transparency at all. On Jan.8, next year (2019), Puntland will go on election even though the region is facing crises of social economic and political.

Leadership changes are mandatory, and we need someone who leads Puntland in the right direction regarding security and development and fights corruption and brings back law and order in Puntland regions again. We need to make a change also for current parliaments and choose academic people who have at least a Bachelor Degree or equal experience.

The United Nations is profoundly worried by the current breakdown of the truce in Gaalkacyo and the proceeding with the disappointment of the Puntland and Galmudug administrations to actualize understandings, including the one marked on 2 December 2015 and again on 1 November 2016.

Profoundly frightened by the continuous viciousness in Gaalkacyo, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Somalia, Michael Keating, ventured out to the Puntland city of Bossaso and met with Puntland President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali "Gaas." This visit happens after a recent emergency gathering in Mogadishu between the SRSG and Galmudug President Abdikarim Hussein Guled.

As indicated by his decision "manifesto," President Gaas guaranteed to change the judiciary; redesign the security and open areas, and grow the range and nature of Puntland's physical frameworks.

One of the most prominent problems in Puntland administration is corruption among the members of parliament and the cabinet ministers. Over the years, it has been suspected that some of these corrupt dealings could be directly linked to President Gaas, although he has denied on many occasions.

Individuals from Somalia's autonomous zone Puntland Parliament removed the state's cabinet of ministers over developing corruption and uncertainty, Horseed Media reports. In an uncommon move, more than 40 MPs recorded a no-confidence motion against the cabinet after a past gathering between a board from the Parliament and Puntland President along a few of his ministers failed to achieve adequate conclusions.

Individuals from the Parliament censured the local cabinet of neglecting to address the developing weakness occurrences in a few sections of the state and corruption. The vote of no-confidence in the cabinet got the support of 47 out of the 66 individuals from the Parliament, as per the official outcomes.

Following the move by the Puntland administrators, President Abdiweli Mohamed Ali Gaas held a Press Conference in which he acknowledged the vote of the Parliament.

President Ali included that he will start discussions with his Vice on framing another cabinet within the 21-day due date. Puntland proclaimed itself to be semi-autonomous from Somalia in 1998 as battling seethed through the majority of the nation.

Dissimilar to the self-pronounced territory of Somaliland, Puntland isn't attempting to get international recognition as a country. It tries to end up some portion of the unified Somalia that is a federal republic.

The recently shaped regions have not developed individual groups' yearnings and needs, nor earlier evaluation and group conference to legitimize designation of new regions. As they didn't agree on lawful necessity as far as demography, borders, resource base and potential to work as a neighborhood organization.

It was just based a fiendish needs of lawmakers, keeping in mind the end goal to persuade the general population they spoke to and flaunt to have pulled in an advancement, while practically failed their part out in the open workplaces.

The nearby communities of all foundation are peace-loving individuals and trust standard of concurrence in peace and congruity; even there is no any threatening vibe and clashes among the general public. The neighborhood communities share the basic resources, for example, the rangelands and water sources.

Be that as it may, the current Puntland organization had failed to accomplish the reconciliation procedure and make a quiet domain between the communities in Puntland that would quicken the advancement of group cooperation.

As individuals expected that legislature took the lead the discourse and transactions among communities; however current organization plotted to part up and make unsteadiness among communities to occupy current political strains grew seriously by resistances inside the parliament and some of the key senior citizens.

By Yusuf Aden Ahmed

Yusuf is an Academic, and Social Activist who has Major M.A Peace and Security.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Garowe Online's editorial policy.