The new cabinet appointed by
Prime Minister Abdiweli Shaikh Ahmed on January 17 has been raising uproar. The naming of a cabinet has been
perhaps the most grueling process in recent Somali history. The president was
heavily involved in the selection of the appointees and his prints are all over.
Some of the hopefuls were promised positions—others were even invited to
Mogadishu—only to be rejected in the eleventh hour. The new cabinet was announced
in the wee hours at 2 AM. The dramatic responses have already begun and
protestations are being heard from all corners: the cabinet is too big; two of
the appointees resigned the same day of the announcement; women are upset for
being marginalized; some clans are up in arms; groups like Ahlu Sunnah Wal Jama
have vowed to boycott the federal government; Dammul Jadiid is monopolizing power;
and too many inexperienced persons are in the cabinet. The features of this new
cabinet are as follows:
Size: This cabinet is big. It has 25 ministers, 25 deputy
ministers, and five state ministers. The previous cabinet was unusually lean
with only ten ministers, however, this one is unnecessarily large, and is a
clear manifestation of a bloated government. In reality, all of these appointed
ministers are merely officials by name. Many have no basic infrastructure such as
offices, nor do they possess the necessary manpower that should go with their
big titles.
Resignations: The most embarrassing moment for the president
and the prime minister was when two deputy minister appointees, including the
Mayor of Mogadishu, resigned in protest of what they called the “lowly”
positions they were given. Mogadishu mayor, Mohamoud Ahmed Nur “Tarzan” called
for an immediate press conference in which he said he had not been consulted
about the position. “I will not accept the position of a minister,” he declared,
“let alone a deputy minister.”
Tarzan’s appointment as deputy
minister was humiliating and purely Machiavellian on the part of President Hassan
Sh. Mohamoud. The president could have replaced Tarzan quietly with another
mayor, but he had neither the courage nor the decorum to ask Tarzan to resign.
It is the president, after all, who appoints the mayor of Mogadishu. Perhaps,
either Ali “Amerika” (the Somali ambassador to Kenya) or Abdirahman “Yariisow,”
(the government spokesman), might replace Tarzan. That is, unless the president
comes up with another option in the last minute. The president wanted to humiliate Tarzan publicly
and he got his wish. Now, it is unlikely that Tarzan will last in his current
position. Tarzan, a man of an outsized
ego, finally got his match in the president. One wonders how the president and
his prime minister managed to appoint individuals to these positions without
first consuling with them. It is, at best, sheer unprofessionalism.
Women: President Mohamud’s earlier promises to give women equal
representation in the government have hit a snag. The new cabinet has only two
women out of 25 (5%). This is a downgrade from the last cabinet in terms of
percentage (20%) which had two women in powerful posts out of ten. One of the
newly appointed ministers has been given the traditional portfolio of women’s
affairs, and the other has been promoted from deputy minister in the ministry
of public works to full minister. There are two new female deputy ministers out
of 25 and no female state ministers. Mohamoud has alienated many groups and
clans, but his alienation of women, who represent half of the population, is
tragic.
Dammul Jadiid: This secretive but powerful group is still
occupying key positions. There are more than a dozen appointees in the cabinet
that belong to Dammul Jadiid, including the new deputy prime minister and
minister of religion. Traditionally, deputy prime ministers are chosen from key
posts such as finance, foreign affairs or defense. The new deputy prime minister has all of the
qualifications that President Mohamoud likes: he is inexperienced, a member of
Dammul Jadiid, and hails from the north. Dammul Jadiid’s naked power grab is
now in epic proportions.
Farah Abdulkadir, the architect
of President Mohamoud’s election, was appointed as Minister of Justice and
Constitution. This is a clear indication that President Mohamoud is already
laying the ground work for his re-election in 2016. Abdulkadir is the right man
to help Mohamoud influence future amendments of the provisional constitution.
Abdikarim Hussein Guled, another
stalwart of Dammul Jadiid, is also back as the minister of national security. This
new position is usurpation from the interior ministry, which is traditionally responsible
for the police and intelligence services. Guled now is the new chief of
security and intelligence, and he has his own ministry.
Jamal Barrow, deputy foreign
minister, and Mohamed Nur Gacal, state minister for foreign affairs, two Dammul
Jadiid figures, were not so fortunate. Barrow is replaced by another colleague
of his in the group. Gacal was slated to be a minister of education, yet his
contentious relationship with Foreign Minister Fowzia Yusuf ended up hurting
him. Mohamoud decided to leave these two out of the new cabinet. “My friend,”
the president has told Gacal, according to a source, “I am sorry, but you will
not be in the cabinet.”
Inexperience: Inexperience is a major feature of the new
cabinet. Unfortunately, many of the appointees are inexperienced in government
affairs. Many were brought there not because of their qualifications but
instead for their clan credentials. This has been the hallmark of President
Mohamoud’s administration: to avoid qualified and educated people who might
overshadow him. Mohamoud’s selection of two prime ministers in the span of a year
who are remarkable for their inexperience is a good example of what kind of
cabinet the president desires.
Sharif Sakiin: After Dammul Jadiid, the second big
beneficiary of the new cabinet is Sharif Hassan “Sakiin,” former speaker of the
parliament. He has at least six of his allies appointed as ministers, state
ministers and deputy ministers. President Mohamoud has struck an unholy
alliance with the controversial former speaker and future leader of what is now
proposed as the South West state. Sakiin has become a king-maker, and was
instrumental in gaining votes for Mohamoud in the parliament during the ousting
of PM Shirdon.
The new cabinet will be confirmed
in due time, but it would be unrealistic to expect any miracles from these
ministers. For the time being, it will be business as usual: the president will
keep running the show from Villa Somalia, and the new ministers will obey his
marching orders. They will retain their fancy titles and fat paychecks. In my
estimation, though, they will be lucky if they last more than a year.
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