InvisibleHand wrote:What I am afraid will happen though is that if Sharif is ousted tomorrow and we have a new President, the new President in 2016 will be given all the credit of transforming Somalia. Yes it may seem that Sharif hasnt done anything in terms of development and the establishment of the political structure of Somalia but I dont think we can blame him for this. How can you build the country, create a bureaucracy, and move Somalia forward when you have thousands of armed pseudo-religious thugs causing havoc? They had to be dealt with first and then we can move forward. I am afraid Sharif, who has done the dirty work, will be ignored and even accused of being ineffective in a few years should we have a new president elected tomorrow.
There are 3 or 4 candidates that I would personally support before Sharif but I think that even though he has been in power for 3 years now, that it would be premature to speculate that he would be ineffective in his second term (should he be given one). Due to circumstances beyond his control, he couldnt do what he could have done for the country (in terms of development, etc). One thing I have noticed is that under him in charge, Al-Shabab has gone from controlling the whole southern Somalia to now losing more than half of its control and losing the capital (and it looks like they will be defeated completely within weeks and the government will have control in all of southern Somalia).
Let's say hypothetically that Al Shabab is completely destroyed by October 1st, he loses tomorrow and in the next 4 years, there is positive changes going on in Somalia. Don't you think that people would unfairly blame Sharif of being totally ineffective? Understand that change, especially in a war torn country, will not be immediate. It will possibly take 5-10 years to see real change in Somalia. Nothing is quick. I am not saying continue to support Sharif and pick him as your number one candidate (he's not even my number 1 candidate) but don't be hard on the man. He had such a hard task to do and he has done much for Somalia. Whether you want to disagree or not, what can't be denied is that much has changed for the better for the average person in Mogadishu and in some parts of southern Somalia. Understand that nothing comes quick and not to judge this man prematurely. The situation that Sharif had to deal within the past 3 years is much much stressful and painful than the situation that the next President will be dealing with in his 4 year term.
I rather see Samatar or Farmaajo or even Badiyoow as President but these men are different from Sharif. Yes they may have their PhD's from Western universities but Sharif is someone who has been deeply involved in his country. The same cannot be said about the first three men. He has been involved in trying to disarm the warlords and implemented an Islamic courts system and law across the whole southern Somalia. This is a man who loves his country deeply. This is a man who knows his country in and out. He wants the best for this country, he has seen first hand with his eyes for so many years of the death and destruction. He loves Somalia more than all of us. It doesnt matter who you support but stop and understand that this man wasn't able to accomplish as much due to circumstances.
I hope this election goes smooth, we must accept the final outcome whatever it is for Somalinimo and for our country and I would like to wish every single candidate the best of luck.
Somalia haa nolaato
