A week ago, precisely on the historic day of May 15, Hassan Sheikh Mahamoud’s victory in a presidential election deemed fraudulent and the loss of incumbent President Farmajo, a valued leader, sent shock waves throughout Somalia.
President Mohamed Abdullahi “Farmajo” who was elected for a four-year term in February 2017 is immensely popular with Somalis at home and abroad.
Farmajo inherited a disorderly Somalia and made huge changes in terms of security, good governance, fight against corruption and defense of Somali territory.
Unfortunately, for the past two years, he has come under concerted attack from crooked politicians and foreign diplomats playing kingmakers.
On May 15, Somalia’s parliament “elected” former President Hassan Sheikh Mahamoud despite his undisputed legacy of corruption, mismanagement and divisive politics.
The incumbent president accepted his defeat with grace and congratulated his successor despite a vote laden with vote-buying and months of electoral tampering by the very people in charge of the election.
Somalis, in every corner of this planet and in every town in the Horn of Africa, have been baffled that their revered leader will not return to mend this troubled nation.
In addition, an individual notorious for his past of corruption and fanning of tribal politics will sit in his place in the presidential palace of Villa Somalia.
Millions of U.A.E. dollars poured into Somalia days before the presidential election. Some estimate this dirty money at $42 million.
328 MPs, most of them controversially ‘elected’ – selected would be appropriate here – have scrambled to get their share of those pennies from hell.
Of these 328, 114 reportedly refused to line their pockets and chose to vote for a Somalia free of mercenaries and foreign interference.
Following an undemocratic indirect election demanded by the opposition, the Somali people, deprived of electoral power, see the destiny of their country sold to the highest bidder by a few unrepresentative individuals.
They do not understand how 214 mostly grown men can believe that Hassan is not the man they knew and that he can be entrusted with public property, the security of the country, the protection of territorial integrity and foreign affairs.
However, what many Somalis did not know or downplayed is that Farmajo was a marked man for his nationalist agenda, his defense pact with Ethiopia and Eritrea, his refusal to give up part of the Somali Sea to Kenya and his expulsions of nefarious diplomats.
Western nations, led by the United States and the United Kingdom, have ganged up with the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Djibouti, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and even Israel to dislodge him by any means possible.
Somalis now brace themselves for four years of looting of public funds and natural resources, and the deterioration of the achievements made under Farmajo.
Little is expected of Hassan Sheikh Mahamoud and a compromised parliament when it comes to Somalia’s security, natural resources and territorial integrity.
This election was not a Somali-owned election as foreign handlers chose Hassan Sheikh Mahamoud over Abdullahi Farmajo.
In a nutshell, Somali people feel cheated and Somalia lost already its nascent sovereignty, development and confidence in Somali politicians.
