Yosief Abraham Z.
Egypt’s president, Abel Fattah El Sisi, visit to Eritrea on October 13 of the current year, has many-folded interests and significances. Earlier arrival of the embattled Somalia’s President, Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud, to Eritrea had also its own ordinary but remarkable magnitude. After extensive deliberations, the three countries –Egypt, Eritrea and Somalia– released a joint statement that has both over and covert principles. With the guardianship for external threats, valuating internal situations of Somalia adds significance for commenting on sustainable ways to Somalia’s placidity and unity.
Disputes on ‘power and influence’
With easily indecipherable burdens from Somaliland and Ethiopia’s reluctant principles, Mogadishu internal challenges are also of magnitude. Federal regions of Somalia have been busily in their confrontational systems. Over the integrity of Somalia’s sovereignty, power and influence, have been crucial embodiments of their factional rows.
Past week moves by former President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, and planning minister and current Member of Parliament Abdirahman Abdishakur, were tied to ‘possible power grip’ of the current president after 2026 in ‘unconstitutional mandates.’
Jubaland president, Ahmed Islam Mohamed Madobe, adamancy that led his defiance to walk out of the National Consultative Council (NCC), the supreme organ running Somalia’s affairs, is not a good omen for political affairs of the hopeful but fragile country.
With respect to the views by some concerned Somali who underscored that the move by Madobe as ‘a champion for Unity and Federalism,‘ Madobe from Jubaland and other figures –especially those from Sool, Sanaag, and Cayn– have to weigh if external threats or the ‘direct’ or ‘indirect’ frames of electoral processes saves or deflagrates the hope Somalia has at its hands.
Here, I am not advocating the leadership of Hassan Sheikh as ‘pivotally and only magic solution.’ But here be the endorsers of the tripartite agreement or those from other federal regions of Somalia expect to follow constructive paths of engagements thereby to build a united Somalia.
The inclusion of Puntland has of course must be achieved. Even those leaders from Hirshabelle, Galmudug, and Southwest regional states, anticipate –despite the warm proximity they have maintained with the central government– to mount their efforts by prioritizing crucial pillars for nation building of Somalia. Here, the ‘clan inflicted’ politics and how to define the balance between autonomous regions’ power and the central government mandate also expect to be addressed, dynamically, for a better future of Somalia.
Reassessing repercussions of arming clan militias
Neighbor countries, regional leaders or other partners also expect to reassess the results and it’s subsequent impacts of the country’s approach in arming different clan militias of Somalia.
After an attack in August 2022 by Al shabab on a hotel in Mogadishu, Somalia’s government adoption to arm clan militias in large swaths of territory in the Hirshabelle and Galmudug states, came into effect. And as preliminary evidences testify, these militias played tremendous roles in driving out Al Shabab from wide areas of the stated regions.
This action which had unwavered support even from international quarters at the beginning now demands all-round reassessment by the endorsers of ‘the tripartite agreement’ and other concerned bodies.
Arming this ‘president’s clan’ in the pretext of waging wars against terrorists by secluding others is a bad omen to a country where ‘tribalism’ and ‘clan affiliations’ is rampant. The tripartite agreement thus expects to put this into in-depth consideration.
Identifying opportune gardens for blossoming Al shabab’s precarious position
Politics is not the only remediable medicine for the economic hardships the Somali have been languishing from. Empowering the community by rejuvenating small and midsize businesses should be reinforced.
Al shabab’s insurgency had been rooted in recruiting fighters who –among other factors– actuated because of grinding poverty. With 8.5 million hectares of arable land, vast amounts of livestock and other potencies, Somalia’s responsible body should be aware of the possibility of corruption and its impacts.
Perceptions –and in some identified cases so pragmatic– ascertain that corruption norms have infiltrated among Mogadishu’s central government is a challenge, and, of course, a benediction for Al Shabab’s sways of campaigns. Dissolving two anti-corruption bodies in October 2022 by the central government needs to be adjusted and foster retaining its trust among the residents of territories Al Shabab controls.
Nepotism is also another means Al Shabab’s circle of leadership echoes to slam the government in Mogadishu. Though such matters are not detrimental as the external threats, addressing these scenarios need to be checked and corrected.
Foreign troops and linked narratives
Though Eritrea’s efforts in building Somalia National Army is different in its criticality and elements of approvals among Somali, still there are looms of skepticism regarding the deployment of foreign troops in Somalia’s soil.
The ‘Operation Black Lion’ named military campaigns by Hassan Sheikh leadership and troops from Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti loosely gripped the bars of victory. Such deployment of foreign forces thus have created negative sentiments among Somalis and made them vulnerable to Al Shabab’s pursuance that the group is ‘liberating Somalia from foreign troops.’
With the accumulated observations of the Somali people is at its acme point, the deployment of Egyptian troops and station of the Turkish squads, middle term plans expect to be engineered thereby to delimit a clear border which enshrines the prevalence of foreign forces is not to obstruct the tedious path for building an all-round capable and sovereign military forces of Somalia.
Yosief Abraham Z., a former Executive Director of HorMid (Horn and Middle East) Media and Art Center, is a freelance journalist to major international media outlets with specific concerns on Horn Africa, the Middle East and the Gulf.
Editor’s note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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