Villa Somalia’s Political Miscalculation in Puntland: A Strategy Unraveled

EDITORIAL | Let’s be honest — federalism in Somalia has always been more complicated than trying to get a government driver license in Mogadishu without knowing someone inside. But even by those standards, Villa Somalia’s latest stunt — trying to fold Sanaag and Haylaan into the newly-declared Khaatumo administration — wasn’t just clumsy, it was tone-deaf.

For starters, nobody bothered to check in with Puntland, the regional heavyweight that has not only held the line in that part of the map but done so with more consistency than any federal experiment coming out of Mogadishu. And Puntland, to its credit, has spent years supporting Sool and Cayn in their resistance to Somaliland’s long arm. There was shared blood, political commitment, and let’s not forget: the people of those regions actually helped build Puntland — quite literally.

So when the elders of Sool and Cayn formed the SSC-Khaatumo movement, it wasn’t entirely shocking. Puntland didn’t flinch — as long as the movement remained within its constitutional and clan-linked orbit. What came next, however, was where things started to wobble.

The Khaatumo leadership, fueled by either ambition or advice from a GPS set to Mogadishu, shifted course. They began seeking recognition as a separate federal member state — a move that predictably set off alarms in Garowe. Enter Villa Somalia, with a plan that seemed less about state-building and more about scoreboard politics.

At the recent NCC meeting — which Puntland and Jubaland boycotted like it was a bad reunion — the federal government decided to fast-track SSC-Khaatumo’s recognition. The Ministry of Interior was handed the job of organizing a founding conference. Cue the soft power tactics.

In came Cabdirashid Yuusuf Jibriil, former speaker of Puntland’s parliament, now wearing a federal badge and armed with a plan to build local support in Sanaag. He arrived in Ceelbuh. He tried to rally the crowd. He was politely (but firmly) shown the door by Puntland’s security apparatus. Turns out, you can’t just walk into a region and run politics like it’s open mic night.

Meanwhile, federal ministers from Haylaan and Sanaag were spotted quietly making landings in Laascaanood, possibly waiting for a green light that never came. Because something stronger than political muscle showed up — the elders. Tradition. The kind that doesn’t trend on Twitter but can silence a federal plan in one public statement.

Sultan Siciid Sultan Cabdisalaan — a name not often heard in the halls of Villa Somalia — re-posted a statement from the elders of Sanaag and Haylaan reaffirming their loyalty to Puntland and flatly rejecting any involvement in the SSC-Khaatumo process. That wasn’t just a press release. That was a mic drop.

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about denying the people of Sool and Cayn their right to self-determination or protection. It’s about how you do it. Because if Villa Somalia keeps using short-term tactics to score political points, it’s going to end up with long-term instability that no “founding conference” can fix.

The plan was straightforward — weaken Puntland, build a rival federal unit, and send a few grateful MPs back to Mogadishu for the next electoral cycle. What wasn’t in the plan? The deep-rooted social contract between Puntland and its regions. Oops.

Now, what next? Maybe the elders of Sool and Cayn will step up, clarify where they stand, and either reclaim Khaatumo’s grassroots intent or watch it drift further into political confusion. Or maybe Villa Somalia will do what it does best — ignore the warning signs and press ahead with a strategy that’s already unraveling.

But one thing is abundantly clear: this misstep didn’t just trip over Puntland’s political lines — it stomped on them. And in doing so, it reminded everyone watching that in Somalia, the real power isn’t always where the title says it is. It’s where the people — and their elders — decide it lives.

GAROWE ONLINE