The people and lands which became British Somaliland Protectorate in the late 19th century were traditionally divided into clans. Each clan was separate and independent from the other. Chiefs, Suldans, Grads and Ugases worked to bridge the administration between the British and the various clans. They also bridged the interclan issues.

The major treaty that ever existed in a documented form was that signed in Zeila by the Gadabursi King on December 11, 1884. Many other clans in the north reached formal verbal agreement with the British.

During the protectorate and until independence of the North on June 26, 1960, each clan maintained connections with the British government separately. That was because the treaties signed and the agreements reached between the United Kingdom and clans recognized that each clan area was a separate territory.

These clan treaties defined boundaries and people and are the true evidence that Great Britain was never interested in the creation of a unitary state of Somalis in the North. Similarly, each people worked with the British within their boundaries and through their local suldans.

Gaps and differences of who will rule who surfaced when the independence was close. Witiin the last months of liberation, Borama leaders did not accept the division of the proposed legislative seats. 21 out of the 33 seats were for one clan. They saw that as domination of one tribe in the North.

They then started their historic journey to Lasanod, the eastern end of Somaliland Protectorate. The purpose was to recruit alliances and they were successful in forming the United Somali Party (USP) for the Gadabursi, the Issa and the Darood clans.

USP based its policy on an immediate and unconditional independence. The formation of the party by the Borama elder’s efforts on was celebrated on17/10/1959. SNL sent a delegation to USP, offered their support and invited them in Hargeisa..

The USP clans and others who feared for their future, formed a strong pressure group. Even groups from the Isaaq tribes sided with the USP policy.That was the basis of the campaign that forced the Northerners to join Southern Somalia. These steps prove that the clans in Somaliland never agreed on unitary state in the North.

In an all-inclusive and with preliminary consensus and agreement, the
northern Somalilanders merged with Somalia on July 1, 1960. Within that agreement, the unitary state of Somali Republic was formed.

Throughout the liberation campaign, the entire intention of gaining independence from Britain was precisely to unite with the rest of the country. The fact that the clan negotiated administration of Somaliland existed only six days is a proof of that objective.

All Somalis then willingly voted for the constitution of the unitary sate of Somali Republic on June 20, 1960. This was approved by all clans and over the entire territory Somalia No one was forced to join the state but was the free and the inevitable choice of all.

The results of the referendum, as recorded in the African Election Database 1,756,216 (90. 56 % of the voters voted in favor of the constitution. This again proves the creation of the state was the agreement of all Somalis. That constitutional and democratically elected unitary state of Somali Republic was recognized by the United Nations on September, 20, 1960.

The entry into the United Nations, the new constitution and the new sate definitively abolished previous formations such as Somalia and Somaliland. It also served as a trust administration within all Somalis and particularly for the northerners who could not trust each other.

There are people in northern Somalia who want to rewrite history. They want to distort facts for their interest. That is what northerners could not agree in 1960 and that is what many clans rejected. That is also the reality on the ground today. One group came up with the old cries…. tell them that Somaliland never existed as a state. It died within six days after the British has left the country. It died because many predicted what the so-called Somlaliland administration is doing today in Awdal and Lasanod.

That was denied in 1960 and can’t be accepted today. Stop distorting history. Somalis will never go anywhere unless they face the reality. We have to learn from the history, otherwise we will live in endless circles of wars, hunger and hatred.

Osman Elmi elmi1949@hotmail.ca

Consequently, fourteen elected officials were simply overruled and tossed away by un-elected officials on the false pretense that they did not follow the local government procedures.

For governor Sidci and the minister of interior, the strict adherence to the procedures and formalities of the local government is more important than protecting the public purse, if we have to believe their words. In this latest Borama fiasco, democracy is simply pushed aside and replaced by dictatorship and bureaucracy. The so-called investigation carried out by the deputy minister of interior, who just arrived in Borama yesterday on the taxpayer’s money to tackle this divisive problem, had simply turned out a whitewash.

What a farce! In Silanyo’s Somaliland corruption, embezzlement and misappropriation of public fund seem to pay dividends. It is a common practice in Somaliland that both central and local government officers loot public money with impunity. And all they need to do to steer clear of hot water i.e. to avoid the long arm of the law (if there is one) is to share the loot with their immediate top bosses.

Oozing with confidence, the man many believe to be the most corrupted mayor ever to graze in Borama council had now been given a new lease of life to continue doing what he does best: misappropriate and misuse the meager resources of Borama council for his personal and clannish use. While high ranking officials are currently lurking in the filthy jail of Hargiesa for allegedly stealing a few hundred sacks of donated food, the lowly mayor of Borama, believed to have stolen millions, literally millions of taxpayer’s money collected from the poorest section of the community is simply let off the hook and may be laughing all the way to bank.

In yesterday’s verdict, the deputy minister of interior had simply given the mayor a free license to further embezzle the public fund. For those who are not familiar with the background of the story, the mayor of Borama had allegedly set up a whole new tax collection system outside the official one and a whole new staff was recruited for this illegal undertaking. In the meantime, vouchers/receipts were clandestinely printed in Hargeisa printing house to facilitate this fraud. Indeed, a very serious crime had taken place and no one is accounted for thus far.

Following a tip-off by members of the local government, the office of audit general had immediately started an investigation into the matter, which resulted several members of alleged fraudsters either in jail or on the run. A fraud as serious as the one allegedly committed by the current mayor should never have gone unpunished. The deputy minister of interior should have the guts and courage to ask the mayor to step aside, at least temporarily, until a thorough investigation is completed. No discussion about the misappropriated public money, no discussion on the auditor’s accusations against the mayor and no reprimand on the future conduct of the mayor. Everything is swept under the carpet. The auditors must be kicking their heels.

In the press conference that followed the meeting between the deputy interior minister and the councilors, it was crystal clear that the official from Hargeisa was totally biased towards the mayor and his supporters. The expression of his face said it all. According to Moumin Gadeed who spoke with Harowo.com, the man who should be running the council as the new mayor, the ministry of interior had chosen to side with the alleged fraudster instead of siding with the public and its elected councilors.

As mentioned by another councilor, Nuur Rayaale, a new dawn of corruption had begun for Borama council where “thieves” (his words not mine) are glorified. The irony in this sorrow saga is the fact that even the educated elite, community leaders and clan leaders have all put their weight behind an accused public figure instead of waiting for the final outcome of the story. Some have even threatened with public disorder and violence if their man was removed. It looks they got their wish.

On the other hand, a campaign is currently under way on the part of Borama traders to avoid paying tax until this mayor is if office. This will spell disaster for a cash-strapped council. In Ahmed Silanyo’s government, corrupted officials are not only tolerated but rewarded in their malpractices.

Mohamed F. Yabarag

Email: myabarag@yahoo.co.uk