Reflecting on Pres. Farmaajo Leadership: Success and Failure

by Mohamed Hasan Jimale
Friday, January 15, 2021

Four years ago from today 11th January, 2017, I wrote a short article about the election at that time with special emphasis on the importance of having a visionary leader. My piece came up in Hiiraan Online the well-respected and widely read Somali Website. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (HSM) was the outgoing president of Somalia. Like the vast majority of Somalis, I felt at that time, the need and necessity for change.

Thus, I was very critical to outgoing President HSM in comparison to incoming President Farmaajo who I had a lot of expectations and belief in him. My majority of Somalis including me thought that he was the right person who could save the country from an imminent collapse and chaos.  Although Farmaajo’s government led by his former Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre  have achieved a lot, yet Farmaajo utterly failed in the two most important parts of our fledgling government, which are free and fair election on time and also reconciliation both social reconciliation level and political reconciliation level between the federal government and federal member states. President Farmaajo promised us that he would be a peace-loving elder who would resolve problems expected from an elder statesman, through consensus.

However, his actions of non-compromise such as exclusion of JL and PL from the election process, is detrimental to the stability and unity of the nation. It is also against a nation building, and hope that many people have envisioned to achieve. After seeing and absorbing how things are unfolding; first I would like to apolgise to the former President HSM for, back then, my harsh criticisms on him. Secondly, I would like to offer my sincere advice to the HE. President Farmaajo not to return the Wagon to where we came from which still many people rankle in their mind, the suffering and the pains they endured not yet healed. It is a time for change.

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Mohamed Hasan Jimale
Email: [email protected]