By Osman H. Yusuf
Somalis might soon head to the polls to indirectly elect representatives of the Upper and Lower Chambers of the Federal Parliament for the second time. In 2016 an indirect election took place but the sooner the election was concluded the louder was the foul cry by some candidates which was attributed to the conduct of the election described as one of the most corrupt and largely rigged election the country has seen since it has emerged from State fragility and transition.
This time around people who are supposed to select or elect these representatives must take stock of what happened in 2016 to avoid a repeat of the widely disputed election outcome. Clan chiefs and elders who have the responsibility of selecting those vying for the positions of members of parliament must make tough decisions after thoroughly examining the background of the candidates, in a consultative manner among clan members, and select individuals who:
- Have a clear vision for the future and
- know how to achieve the mission.
These conditions require at least a good legal knowledge and/or experience in history, culture, economy, political situation, social fabric, and environment. Most world countries, when electing members for their legislative bodies usually give preference to those nationals who have acquired juridical knowledge or who possess a wealth of experience on legal matters.
While the responsibilities and duties of the citizens are enshrined in the constitution, the qualifications for prospective candidates to participate in the election must first be established, applied and strictly carried out. That’s to say, a rigorous vetting process must be undertaken by the stakeholders to select candidates vying for representation who are considered to be fit to deal with legislative matters. Such a vetting process would help stakeholders to make an impartial selection of candidates and to not acquiesce or give in to trivial clan demands.
Moreover, elected representatives are expected to display diligence and foresight in performing their legislative duty and effectively contribute to the efficient management of the country’s affairs, cooperating with and supervising the executive branch and evaluating government policies for developments in socio-economic and political areas while checking on arbitrary power.
It’s known that our country is clan tradition oriented and deep in its thoughts is its love for power-sharing along clan lines which somehow has given the wrong impression to some that special interests can be easily pursued by acquiring the influence needed through parliament when, in fact, the true meaning of power-sharing lies in sharing the responsibility for decision-making on national issues through such constitutional venues as the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches of the State. In other words, for some politicians, obsessed with clan interests, power sharing is tantamount erroneously to an outright group, companies, or individual sharing of public resources whereas official transactions on the nation’s wealth and general services are governed by laws, regulations, rules and procedures defining standards set on the basis of efficiency, equity, transparency and accountability.
On the other hand, people’s representatives must seriously take the oath of office and also keep in mind the principles of their great religion instructing them in very clear terms to perform their duties with sincerity and honesty while embracing each other with respect and trust, always working for the common good. However, such laudable behavior has not been witnessed during the terms of the past people’s assemblies or at the many reconciliation conferences held outside the country.
Furthermore, elected representatives face little accountability to the people and have so far escaped public scrutiny, a colonial legacy, but the members of the outgoing Parliament, despite their shortcomings, claim that they have achieved their legislative plan, having made or passed laws, regulations and rules inspired by the national agenda and sponsored by the government, a claim disputed by some observers.
It must be underlined that this is the time to do the right thing and make the right decision, an opportunity that will be given again in four years’ time only, so that this coming indirect election, despite still being based on faulty arguments and reasoning, should be seriously implemented by setting aside trivial political considerations by competing political groups. It pays to face with courage the challenges from unwarranted claims by political groups to advance their interests at the expense of the national goal or we will end up in the same acrimonious environment as in the past four years or earlier blaming elected representatives of misbehavior, irresponsibility, and not having done the tasks before them properly thus, letting people to suffer unnecessary hardship, lack of progress, and political instability.
Ultimately, clan chiefs, elders and regional leadership must take full responsibility of any shortcomings or distorted representation on the part of elected representatives that they, in the first place, had selected to be voted in by the electors. Any criticism afterwards on the failure of members of parliament, blaming them on unfulfilled promises and poor performance is a matter of no consequence to the elected ones as we had witnessed and that behavior should not have been ignored and if repeated will only exacerbate the socio-economic and political situation of the country.
The cost of abusing the democratic principles is a dysfunctional government with dire consequences for the welfare of the nation: You can’t have it both ways! Let’s wake up and embrace reality!
Osman H. Yusuf
Email: osmanyu12@hotmail.com