Somaliland: The Muse Bihi Presidency For quite awhile, this author has decided to remain silent and let the political discourse in Somaliland take its course.
To be perfectly frank, out of the two credible candidates in the last
presidential elections, Muse Bihi of Kulmiye and Abdirahman
Mohamed “Cirro” of Waddani, my preference was for
the former. Not because, of community affiliation, but
because of leadership ability.
There are high hopes for this President and his administration.
Irrespective of whether as some claim, that Muse Bihi has
filled his administration with members of his community or
has enriched his own community, etc, etc. These claims have
been made of every single previous Somaliland president and
will continue to be made, as long as we in Somaliland keep
focusing on this irrelevant issue.
The main reason for the hopes conferred on Muse Bihi were of the need for a
strong, patriotic and honest leadership. Yes, President Muse
can be strident, he can be stubborn, and immovable, but,
Somaliland needs a leader like that at this moment in
time.
Somaliland will always need a leader who will not negotiate the sovereignty of the
nation away. If those who dream of another union with the
south expect Muse Bihi to accede to their wishes, they are
wasting their time. Somalilanders will never again consider
another union based on the foolish and ill considered
“midnimo soomaali”.
I have always stated if international de-jure recognition takes a millennia, as long
as Somaliland recognizes itself and commits to determining
its own future, everything else, is irrelevant. No
order from Mogadishu will ever be the letter of law in
Somaliland. That is a fact.
The usual political noise in Somaliland will always be heard during the Presidency of
Muse Bihi, but, we must to keep moving forward.
We have to hold parliamentary elections in 2019 and reform the House of
Elders “Guurti”. We have to maintain our defensive
abilities. We need open dialogue within all communities in
Somaliland. We need to form stronger ties with our
neighbors and the international community. We
need to build our infrastructure, create jobs and hopes for
our youth.
Above all, we need to be united and forward thinking in
Somaliland.
Allaa Mahad Leh
Ahmed Kheyre