The Promise of Election in Somalia: Power and Bribery
Somalia is heading to indirect election, while the country plagued and divided by protracted social conflict, and the current situation has also been heated up by seismic waves of electoral contest between Federal Government and Federal Member States. Furthermore, Somali’s last universal suffrage was held in 1967, where then the democratically elected president was ruthlessly assassinated. Following years of political brinkmanship and wanton vandalisms which has impacted on every aspect of the hoi polloi and the country at large.
Since the collapse of Somali Republic in 1991, the country experienced circles of chaos and statelessness. Emerging from prolonged conflict and religious extremism Somalia has yet to achieve holding free and fair elections throughout the country, and it remains a distant mirage to be held.
Transparent election has been elusive in a number of African countries. Even those come to an end an internecine warfare and communal conflict are complex to carry out democratic elections, while others teetering on the precipice due to the negation of effective democracy. Decades of war, Somalia has done tremendous efforts in state building but lacks strategic objectives to implement an inclusive and democratic election. Despite the electoral process in the country hindered and dominated by clan elites and controversial politicians who are jostling for mantle of leadership.
After concluding the electoral tussle between Federal Government and Federal Member States on 17 September, 2020, the promise of universal suffrage in the country is just pie in the sky. A timely election was the crux of Somalia’s first priority, which has been widely wrangled by federal government and federal member states and International Community as well. However, the electoral model agreed upon stipulates indirect election, where MPs will be {s}elected through his/her constituency in collaboration with federal member states and traditional leaders, while the president will be elected by the {s}elected MPs.
Moreover, President Farmajo’s adamant promise to reach the country transparent election is in vain, and perceived as wasted time during his tenure. However, election is expected to be reliant upon a canvass among contestants regardless of ethnicity, but Somalia’s election is quite different, and it is considered to be riddled with exorbitant bribery and graft. The upcoming election of presidency and parliaments will be based on clan power sharing formula 4.5, which is obvious to see those seeking top echelons of government to get in power at any costs.
The primacy of free and fair election is to offer the advantage of establishing post-conflict state building and reducing the need for long, costly and politically unpalatable turmoil. On one hand, the indirect election is problematic for Somalia’s fledgling democracy and it jeopardize on the path towards democratic, stable and prosperous Somalia. On the other hand, it hamstrings accountability, cultivates recrimination and gnaw away at the progress has been made.
All in all, both Federal Government and Federal Member States ought to give amply financial supports and well trained opportunity to those assigned to vote for MPs in order to extirpate bribery and corruptions in the parliamentary election. If the {s}election of parliaments is fair enough, then it would be possible to have a transparent presidential election, which can be insulated from bribery and meddling. However, OPOV could be a panacea for Somalia’s civil strife, of course, it would have been palliative for the political nemeses in the country by allowing ordinary citizens to seek their inalienable basic rights at the ballot box.
The author can be reached via Mabdalle@yahoo.com, or follow Twitter @Mabdalle1
