Sunday,
August 03, 2008 - It
is very difficult to call a government legitimate
when its people see it into two different distinct
ways. Part of the country sees this Transitional
Somali government as a legitimate and safier while
the other part sees as a killer and illegitimate.
This legitimacy of government is not limited only
the current one but some people also question the
legitimacy of previous governments.
Some tribes of the Somali
society always depend on government assistance
because they obtain the lion share of its
resources without contributing it. They believe
that the government has to support financially
always no matter whether they work or not. They
also believe that the government works for them.
They survival depends on the government. It is
like a welfare system where the government pays
all their cost.
While some other tribes see the
government as a burden and obstacle to their
progress and prosperity and also they believe that
the government hurts, steel their land and
property and sometimes even imprisoned and killed
its tribes on the name of a government. They also
believe that they are better off without
government because they do not belief that it can
provide justice and that the government does not
treat its entire people equally and honestly.
Background:
Once upon a time there were two
men (A&B) who were normal friends and also
they were neighbors and everyone was mind only on
his own business. They never interfered on each
other personal affairs. They lived with different
style of live. A was an ordinary man and B was a
business man. Both of them were family men. A has
five children and B has seven children.
Both the children of the two men go together to school every morning and play together in the afternoon. Also, the families help each other when there is a need of house hold items. The two families act like one in day to day affairs however; the men hardly see each other let alone talk about social, financial politics affairs.
Both men get up early in the
morning and each one heads to own direction. Both
men have cars and dress more or less the same. A
jacket with many pockets, a hat and a Cain. One
goes to the big hotels in Mogadishu and the other
to the market.
A has never worked and he
supports his family without difficulty. A. Heads
early to some of the big hotels in Mogadishu such
as Uruba, Juba and Talex and Shebelle where he
meets some his tribe’s men. He spends there the
whole day and discuss about politics and which
Ministry, factory or Bank to go and get money (Shaxaad).
He and his tribe’s men always talk about the
government affairs as a something belongs only to
them. Not only that but they also deicide where
and whom to sit with, chew Khat and plan the next
move. His plan is which Minister to deal first and
how much money would he request.
Another issue which dominates A
and his tribe men discussion is where to obtain a
receipt (boono) to exchange with money. The Bono
usually come from Ministers with a lot money such
as Ministry of Finance, Industry, Agriculture and
Health and some banks such Commercial and National
Bank or from government industries such as Hides
and skills, Sugar, Cigarettes and Spaghetti. The
receipt may say that this man must be given 100
cartoons cigarettes or 1000 sacks of sugar or rice
without paying a penny. This receipt change hands
between fours or five people of the same tribe
before it finally ends up on the hands of a
business man of another tribe. In this way it only
riches certain groups of the society particularly
those who are associated with the government
officials.
B. The business man goes to the
market and buys and sell different items such as
sugar, rice, oil and construction materials. He
sells and buys on retail and whole sale. He goes
to the port and pays pribes in order to pay less
tax. He and tribes men control the market of all
the necessary things. They also control the black
market and exchange money market. He is busy with
which commodity is available and which one is in
short supply. He does not care about politics. He
hardly talks or sees politicians including his own
tribe because he knows that they are not strong
and effective. He believes if that he needs some
thing from the government he has to pay. He also
believes that the government does not work for him
and does not belong to him. This believe is not
merely limited to him but it some things he share
with all his tribes men.
Finally, what is going in the
current TSG is similar to what happened to
previous governments. Those who are supporting
this TSG want to get back to welfare system they
enjoyed since Somali independence. And also that
is why some other people are against the
government because they do not see it as a
legitimate and useful to them. They prefer to live
without government because they do not depend on
government handouts. Somalia needs a government
which treats its people the same way and respects
the rule of law, respect human rights, free speech
and good governance.
Luqmaan Suleiman
