In His Attempt to Free Himself from Federalism Constraints, President Hassan Risks Executive Overreach
SomaliPage Editorial
Somalia has been the textbook example of failed state since late eighties. It has been battered by long and grueling civil war. The country and its poor inhabitants were caught in last two decades in a cycle of violent clan disputes, famine, fanaticism, and piracy.
After twenty years of savage internecine tribal strife, hostile foreign interferences, religious insurgency, cosmetic reconciliation exercises and successive corrupt transitional governments, Somali politicians have finally overcame whatever spell the long civil war have casted on them and decided to turn the page and adopt a new political paradigm.
Clan representatives that gathered in Mogadishu in mid 2012 have reached consensus in adopting federation based on pre-civil war administrative regions and enshrined this unfamiliar (to Somalis) political concept in (yet to be ratified) Provisional Constitution.
But it would be a mistake to read too much into progress that had been made. Significant features of Provisional Constitution include provision of federal system of Somalia. But such matters as the status of
Mogadishu, the capital, and of the borders and the distribution of power and resources between federal states were left undecided. Overall political process was not without controversy either. Draft constitution was rushed to completion. Reconciliation had been and remains to be cosmetic, unreal and incomplete. Al Shabaab forces are still around. And government is weak and counts on AMISOM forces for its security.
Nevertheless the adoption of federation in Garowe’s grand compromise played pivotal role in convincing all political stakeholders to place their guarded trust in this new social contract and for the first time pledge their allegiance to post-transitional government.
It is safe to portray federalism in Somali context as a bargaining game between clan(s) in power and the opposition clans out of power. To govern the country effectively the central government (the president in particular) needs the political support and mutual cooperation, in the spirit of unity, of not only the members of the Parliament in their capacity as representatives of districts of their clans but also the governors of the federal member states as well.
This political arrangement denies clan(s) in power the excesses and immunity the likes of Mohamed Siad Barre’s administration used to enjoy. It empowers opposition parties (clans) and adds a “veto players” to the democratic politics. Such definitive system of checks and balances are inconvenient obstacle in the way of clan(s) in power, hence the current administration in Mogadishu’s disdain for formation of new federal member states. After all Clause 2, Article 48 of Chapter 5 – Devolution of Powers Of Government In Federal Republic Of Somalia – stipulates that single regions that are not part of existing federal member state “shall be directly administered by The Federal Government for maximum period of two years”.
Government’s position on formation of the new federal member states is wrong but understandable. It stand to reason, from their part, to ask why help create yet another political forces, on top of existing federal member states, that would certainly constrain the power of federal government to shape the agenda in the crucial post conflict period? According to press accounts, the administration in Mogadishu has formally decided to oppose the way the formation of federal member state of Jubba is managed.
Note the government’s claim that it does not oppose the formation of federal member states. It merely wants, the prime minister insists, to guide, to influence and to facilitate state formation process. In other words, it wants to control the outcome. Ironically, it cited Article 48 of Provisional Constitution as the reason it opposes grassroots deliberation in Kismayo.
The gathering in Kismayo is a grass root driven effort to implement constitutionally protected right to assemble and form a federal state within confines of the grand compromise and agreed social contract. This gathering is also timely and crucial stress testing the resilience of the political settlement to unrestrained executive and presidential power grab. Ongoing deliberation in Kismayo, if it has its way, will create the second federal member state of Somalia.
If and when that effort succeeds and Jubba Federal State arrives, the national commission nominated by the Federal Parliament will be tasked to study all unresolved issues regarding federal member states and submit a report of its findings back to the Parliament. Among other unrelated but equally important and outstanding issues members of the Parliament need to look at are issues relating to the implementation of constitutionally mandated Upper House of Parliament, the status of Mogadishu, harmonization of the two levels of government, the establishment of numerous commissions, etc.
Instead of working with members of the Parliament the president and his prime minister are trying to overcome constraints that federalism imposed on executive branch. Administration’s overreach, if successful, will redefine the terms of political settlement that brought it to power. Although number of areas concerning the formation of federal members states fall in grey area and the Parliament has the jurisdiction to review and legislate laws clarifying this issue, Constitution is clear that any two or more administrative regions may form federal member state if they so desire.
However, if President Hassan’s administration ignores the limits of its constitutional power for political reasons, the consequence of a renewed political conflict could be real, and dire. The political conflict the administration helped create in Jubba region could escalate to dangerous levels where alshabaab, for instance, could leverage the political disagreement between those spearheading Jubbaland State initiative and the administration in Mogadishu to its advantage. That would be a bad development for all involved. According to Ahmed Madobe and Professor Gandi (two men who are leading the Jubba initiative), organizers of Kismayo Conference have no problem in permitting the government to play its constitutional role. What they are vehemently opposed to, they say, is the notion of government forming the state to its liking. The process, they point out, has been in the works for number of years with IGAD acting as an impartial observer to ensure its integrity. It is prudent on the administration’s part to accept the IGAD observed political process in Kismayo and avoid executive overreach, particularly this early stage of the nascent post transitional government. The risks of attempting to water down federalism constraints outweigh its benefits.
Source: http://www.somalipage.com/2013/03/in...ive-overreach/