Just less than two months away from presidential elections in a place widely notorious with despots for the last half century and conflicts, and the Kenya’s invalidation of presidential results reinforced the Africa’s immature democracy, Somaliland next elections to be fair and free is too distant and sometimes “miracle” under the Kulmiye’s watch whose past elections handling all involved in controversy of some degree and often in impasse and bloodshed from municipality elections to the recent parliamentary Speaker until the Wadani opposition leader took the role of the justice and ended the dispute peaceful by convincing his colleague to concede for the good of the country as Wadani ultranationalist, and he did.
Somaliland ruling party’s popularity in nadir began to approach the voters in pro-Wadani districts to ask their voting cards to buy from 50 to 150 USD then burn in order to kill voters that likely to vote against the military candidate Muse Bihi Abdi, said the local press, and this unprecedented step can destabilize the country if the national election watch passively.
Like Kenya elections that relied on international election observers to mitigate the possible dispute, Somaliland will heavily rely on what the foreign monitors on polling stations say about the presidential elections result because the electoral body are green and their independence is in question never mind judiciary who are rubber stamp to the First Lady and to the money where it moves.
Imagine Wadani opposition party runs for presidential elections under which the all referees, linesmen, and the judges of the election are from the ruling party Kulmiye: the Speaker of Parliament, the court judges, Imams, political thugs for hire and UCID fake opposition designed to declare Muse the winner before the electoral body even say military Mujahid candidate won, belong to Muse Bihi camp for one reason alone, he has the public purse to feed them if they blindly campaign for him like the Hargaysa government hospitals directors leaving patients die in diarrhea.
Yet the people in favor of Wadani party following the focus group who said they want a leader of zero military background as Strongman Barre’s killing fields haunt them. Leader with zero involvement of innocent massacre who has soft place for ordinaries like Iro of the Wadani.
But under influence of amateur campaigners of his clan, Muse run to Mosques and streets to pretend and copycat the natural tendency of Wadani likable, smiley leader, this dishonesty may cost his remaining trait of being authoritarian Mujaahid against Faqash, politely shunning saying of Hartis and Gudabiirsi tribes who constitute not less than half of Somaliland voters.
Institutions have weakened since Somaliland president fell ill. The presidential palace is like more sanatorium than president’s office. Last week, the unpopular candidate Muse whispered into ears of Saylaci the VP of which supposed to be the presidential candidate by law in the this election to issue stunt orders to all ministries to falsely impress to his homeland region of Awdal making them think a true decision maker in Kulmiye clannish polity but smart voters understood and protested against Muse’s arrival in Borama, they said he has no place in Awdal because he was a warlord of Issaaq clan before and later on Habar Awal one when Somaliland disintegrated into civil war.
He isn’t a politician but sentimental average man and can’t be trusted with the country’s leadership, said the Awdalians. Saylici the VP wasn’t even allowed to command prayer congregation in the mosque in the palace never mind asking lower state staff to bring their annual performance.
He is a nominal figurehead and unwanted in the eyes of Mujaahid Muse Bihi whom was knighted twice by Sooyaal Mujaahid Knighthood Veteran Office and once by Super Awal House near Idaacadda quarters.
If the Mujahid junta make military coup given the reshuffle of the disobedient military staff and commanders of the police forces to Muse and his cadets, Somaliland will face scenario worse than Kenya whose courts dared to save from election fraud when in fact the international election observers failed to detect the procedure faults that led Kenyan incumbent president to be reelected.
To avoid chaos election which Somaliland ruling party had prayed for so long, the world countries should send as much as election observers to advocate democracy in the Horn of Africa and go places where the rigging is more likely: 26 June district of Hargaysa, and Gabilay, and Sool, Eastern Sanaag where the rule of law is nonexistent. These few steps can avoid political mayhem from Somaliland.
Somaliland Concerned National, mrdirye@gmail.com