VILLA SOMALIA’S BIZARRE STATEMENT WILL NOT SAVE THE ROGUE AFRICAN UNION ENVOY, BUT IT EXPOSES THE BEFUDDLED STATE OF ITS AUTHOR

The man who has occupied Villa Somalia remains a peculiar, secluded figure. He has rarely appeared or spoken in public in person. Not much of him has been seen virtually either. Somalis barely know who their president is, what he does, or what his policies and priorities are for over five years. Assessing his competence and performance has been immensely difficult. 

This statement published by Villa Somalia on Twitter has furnished the public with a rare opportunity to take a look at the measure of the man in charge of their national destiny. The statement is the President’s response to the decision by the Prime Minister to expel the Special Representative of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Ambassador Francisco Madeira, for engaging in activities “incompatible with his status.” 

The reaction of the public to the statement displays a widespread sense of disappointment and disapproval. The reasons that prompted the people to reach this verdict are many. But the overarching sentiment was that the President’s statement was disproportionate, demeaning, arrogant, abusive, inappropriate and poorly crafted in terms of language, tone and decorum. Particularly, the Statement seems to reveal a fundamental misunderstanding of the origins and meaning of the awesome powers bestowed on the President. The President appears to believe that he and he alone is the state, government, and the law. His understanding of sovereignty, foreign policy, and national interest also seems inseparable from his personal whims and private feelings. 

The sole purpose of the President’s statement is to pick a fight with, smear, humiliate and ignore the Prime Minister, oblivious to, even ignorant of the fact that the Prime Minister heads the council of Ministers and runs the country on the basis of powers rooted in the Constitition. In addition, the President seems unaware of the serious and corrosive crisis of legitimacy blighting his Presidency, given the fact that his constitutionally mandated term ended more than a year ago. 

Most importantly, the Statement displays monumental deficiencies in the character, qualities, capabilities, ethos and finesse essential for knowing when and how to exercise the enormous powers of the Presidency, in whose best interest, and at what cost. In fact, these qualities seem to be more evident in the Prime Minister than the President in this particular encounter. A quick look at the letter of the Prime Minister and the statement of the President would confirm this basic fact. 

The bizarre statement will not save the corrupt, malignly incompetent, and foul mouthed envoy, Francisco Madeira. Given his track record and his recent alleged egregious transgressions, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission has no credible option but to recall him. However, the Statement sheds more light on the befuddled state of its author. The public now know a bit more about their hooded and muted President. 

 Hassan Keynan