Mohamed Abdi
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
EID Mubarak! As we celebrate, let us reflect on the developments in our homeland and be guided by the true meaning and significance of EID.
Sometimes on a very cloudy day, the clouds part and the sun peeps through the clouds and offers us its rays of hope. This metaphor is apt as we learn of the composition of the Somali Cabinet that will administer the daily governance of the affairs of Government.
The rays of hope include:
- A significant reduction in the size of the Cabinet and an attempt to depart from the bloated bureaucracy of the past government.
- The composition of the Cabinet implies a marked shift and improvement towards putting experience and competence thereby enhancing international credibility and acceptance.
- The Deputy Prime Ministers and their portfolios signal the pressing national priorities of the Government.
- The remaining Ministerial portfolios, while some could have been consolidated, reflect those issues that require the steady hand of competent persons.
Rays of hope, by themselves, do not portend failure or success. Mere selection of a Cabinet, while for the most part seems good and well balanced, is just a first step. While style is important in politics, for Somalia, substance is and will be the measuring tool for the remaining term of the current administration.
There is deep skepticism among Somalis that needs to be addressed. This skepticism is born out of the failures and lack of real accomplishment by previous governments.
Among the questions that linger in the minds of Somalis are:
- What is the agenda of the current Cabinet? What is hoped to be accomplished by the end of the current term of the TFG.
- If this Cabinet represents a change in focus and direction, what changes are contemplated?
These questions need to be answered either directly or indirectly. The “honeymoon” period will be very short. The total government needs to enter into a period of dialogue with the Somali people to win their support and that of the international community.
We all hope that this will usher in a period of cooperation with Parliament and real progress toward the development of those institutions that are foundational to future development of Somalia.
Mohamed Abdi
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