Hiiraan Online

Corruption is an elusive concept because what may be corruption in one society may not be seen to be so in another society due to its inconspicuous nature. Nonetheless, corruption is everywhere in all societies. It is a global problem that affects virtually all countries. The only difference is the level and degree of tolerance a country has towards it.  Corruption can be defined in general terms as “any organized, interdependent system in which part of the system is either not performing duties it was originally intended to or performing them in an improper way, to the detriment of the system's original purpose”. Corruption is generally designed to gain a personal financial or political benefit by public officials or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, a public duty.

Many wonder if the United Nations is corrupt and can not be an honest broker in the Somalia conflict, and we have been hearing many stories of allegations of corruptions, but did we fail to investigate such accusations? This bring to mind Graham Hancock’s investigative book about the UN and International NGOs “the lords of poverty” which portrayed the degree of corruption that is mired within the UN and International NGOs

Somalia has been ranked as the most corrupt nation in the world by transparency international. It is believed that an Increasing level of corruption in Somalia is due to the level of institutional weakness in the country which makes it possible for political leaders and public servant to embezzle national resources and abuse their power without being checked.

BACKGROUND & PROBLEMS                                                    

The absence of the rule of law and statelessness has led to a situation of pure anarchy, more so, after the collapse of the government. This provided a fertile ground for warlords and Islamist militia who until today, rule and control parts of Somalia. It is common knowledge that all state institutions collapsed at this time and some have not been revived.                         

a)      The absence of any form of institution has also been contributed to by the business and political elite, and UN officials who seem to be very comfortable with lawlessness that exists.

b)      It is without doubt that some of the business and political elite’s fortunes continue to increase despite the fact that Somalia has no government and is in a state of lawlessness. It then follows that the strength of the warlords is based on their financial wealth which is used to buy arms and prolong the lawlessness.

c)       After all the status quo is beneficial to them as there is no accountability for anything and that the spoils of the war economy is being taken advantage by many.

d)      Despite all problems plaguing the nation, there has been an emergence of the hawala & Telecommunications money that brings Somalia an income of around USD. 1.5 Billion (World Bank figures) which is quite surprising. It is a combination of ancient trade credit systems based upon modern communication systems such as cell phones. This explains why the telecommunications industry is similarly thriving in Somalia.

Using the above problem statement as prelude, it is without doubt that Somalia is capable of rising from the ashes of statelessness that has characterised the country sine 1991. In my humble view the dream of full nationhood, pacification and return of the rule of law could be achieved only through:

Political Settlement: (There can be NO Military solution in Somalia)
Inter-Somali Dialogue: (Somali-Controlled Peace Process free from external meddling)
The need for full co-operation with the international community on all aspects of governance.
The current TFI making a special appeal to the Somalis Diaspora in order to lure them to investing its capital and human resources in the reconstruction of the country.
The establishment of the rule of law and ensuring that  the warlords, business and political elite do not operate in the country with impunity knowing that there is no system of accountability.

Building Institutions

Building effective government institutions poses special challenges particularly in countries with scare resources, like Somalia. However, building strong institutions is only one step to ensure that democracies deliver real results. Institutions such as representation systems, consultation committees, and comment-and-notice periods ensure that policymakers must confer with their citizens and other elected officials before making policy. Without these institutions and practices, lawmakers can behave like dictators, enacting and implementing policies as they see fit. It is sad that the TFG is only a care taker that has no legal authority to enter international and bilateral agreements, yet it has been doing so, as most of the law makers as well as technocrats and cabinet ministers lack the capacity to grasp the law of the land- the Transitional Federal Charter, that has been the TFG’s Achilles heel     

UNPOS – incompetent since 1995

The Secretary-General established the United Nations Political Office for Somalia (UNPOS) on 15 April 1995, to advance the cause of peace and reconciliation through contacts with Somali leaders, civic organizations and the States and organizations concerned.

The UNPOS role is to stabilize the country for the past 11 years. And it is now trying to move the current government from a transitional institution to a permanent government that can provide security, health, education, drinking potable water and jobs.

I believe the mistrust between the UN and Somalis is due to lack of communication, lack of understanding the traditional politics, and lack of vision & above all CORRUPTION. The UNPOS must really engage in the Somali public particularly the Diaspora in order to succeed. This will help the UN to succeed in its endeavour of stabilizing Somalia. It can hire qualified technocrats to the right position as the biggest challenge facing Somalia are suffering for the lack of technocrats who are capable to activate the dysfunctional institutions of Somalia.  In keeping with the vision of the UNPOS, developing Somali institutions is the key to the next stage of stabilizing Somalia.

UNPOS also needs to look alternatives and must move away from the current political elites and discover future Somali leaders; individuals with leadership skills and at the same time have high moral integrity; individuals capable of taking Somalia out of this chronic misery. It is also important to launch groundbreaking initiatives aimed at empowering Somali women and increasing their social and economic self-determination to ensure a stable Somali family. 

Similarly, to put into a proper context the corruption and the continuation of the status quo in Somalia, one only needs to observe this latest skirmish, where the big elephant in the house, Kenya invaded Somalia, such illegal invasion is consistent with the corruption, and regional states’ preferred outcome of keeping the status quo. Do you really believe that Kenya would put their sons and daughters in the line of fire because of establishing Azania and Jubbaland states or as claimed to create a buffer zone to contain Alshabab elements? Kenyan government is desperate and waged a war and invaded Somalia to continue the status-quo. The invasion of Kenya is not to help AZANIA or Jubbaland. It is pure economic strategy to keep Somali businessmen in EISLEIGH, and to protect 18.000 UN and NGO jobs in Nairobi. It is all about the Kenyan economy stupid!

There are 1 to 2 Million Somali families living in Nairobi and Mombasa, each family employs 1 to 3 Kenyan’s. Election is around the corner in 2012, Imaging if roughly 2 to 3 million Kenyan jobs disappear? I bet this is one thing that Kibaki and Odinga don’t want to see happen in election year.