Stolen
Presidential Election and perhaps the End of
Somaliland:
By Dr.
Shacabi
Somaliland
Presidential Election outcome are stolen, manipulated with or have the outcome
of the final results illegally interfered the selected task of the Somaliland
Election Commission with not only by the Riyales’ government ministeries but
also some key members of the Somaliland Congress and House of Elders or
senators. This shows if one control (UDUB/Power of Government) any part or all
of the election process, i.e not only inside the polls on Election day, but
also outside the polls of election day and the determination of the outcome of
the final counts or all of the election process(whom registers to vote, whom
votes, for which candidate they vote, or the count) how can you lose, this is
exactly how UDUB couldn’t lose, because they are using all resources and the
power that they can utilized in order to win by any means necessary.
The
election fraud tears a gaping hole in the supposedly sacred “ Fair and free
electoral system in Somaliland first democratic presidential election” and
the best efforts of Somaliland
Citizens/media and the leadership of both challenging political parties of
Kulmiye and Udub to promote “reconciliation”
and legitimacy for the Riyale presidency are not going to make that
outrage voters disappear. The Somaliland Presidential election was stolen in
advance, first, by what is now universally recognized the Election Commission
as the tension of Somaliland voters and the final political parties rise-up
and also the manipulation and the interference of both houses to delay the
outcome of the final election results almost two days.
Can we
ask ourselves and say, was this really a stolen election? Absolutely: not once
but more than once. Did the actual outcome matter? Yes and No. Whose votes
were wasted? To state the main point first: There is a deep and underreported
anger among thousands and thousands of Somaliland
people.
There
remains the question: Who wasted their votes? Let’s emphasize that we are
NOT speaking here of the tens of thousands of people who can feel their votes
were cast productively, because they liked what Kulmiye Party Leadership had
to say, and voted accordingly. That’s democracy, at least electoral
democracy.
We must
each familiar with nuts and bolts of Election Fraud so we can expose it and
stop it! We must be familiar with Election Laws in our area so that we can
demand that our elections be managed legally, properly and fairly! We must
demand changes when the laws are unfair, we can only demand this if the
Superior Court of Somaliland didn’t settle this election disputies fairly
and squarly. If the Somaliland Supreme Court didn’t settle the election
recount fairly, this will lead the
brink of civil war and perhaps the end of Somaliland.
The
nature and scope of electoral integrity issues are affected in great part by
the type of governance within a country and the cultural practices and social
norms of its people. Although the basic problems are the same everywhere-- the
unethical or illegal use of money, power or influence to artificially affect
the election results-- the social and political context determines in large
part, how these problems will manifest. Has the government taken an active
role against corruption? Do the citizens understand the importance of
elections and maintaining election integrity? Do the political parties know
how to contest the elections, and do so in an honourable manner?
Each
country has a unique type of governance, evolving from its political, economic
and cultural history. The type of governance will affect the scope and nature
of election integrity issues and the effectiveness of the different mechanisms
which establish and enforce integrity. Countries with a history of governance
based on the rule of law, with public officials that are accountable and
procedures that are public and transparent, usually provide an environment
that is conducive to maintaining electoral integrity. Violations of the
electoral law can be identified and remedied, while prosecution and punishment
of criminal actions can be processed through a working legal system.
In
countries struggling with governance and rule of law issues, maintaining
electoral integrity can be much more difficult. Here the electoral policy body
and the electoral management body might need to establish their institutional
and administrative credibility. Keeping election policy and administration
neutral, professional and transparent can be difficult and might require
additional mechanisms such as international technical assistance, or the
presence of long term international observers. In the absence of credible
legal and judicial systems, the election management body itself might have to
be given wide powers to decide on complaints about the conduct of election
officials, parties, candidates and others.
The
political culture of a nation has been found to affect the conduct of its
citizens and leaders, including their participation in elections. Political
culture affects the public's perception of the electoral process and whether
the elections and its outcome were legitimate. It is also a major factor in a
national perception of what is and what is not an integrity problem.
Universal
standards have been identified for free and fair elections, but political
culture affects how these standards are interpreted. For example, Ethical
behavaior is a part of integrity yet definitions may vary about what is and
what is not "ethical"? Education, socialization, occupation,
culture- all shape the way behaviour is perceived and judged. In countries
with deep social and political cleavages, it can be difficult to agree on a
national standard for integrity. Keeping elections "genuine" is much
easier when there is a national or widespread consensus on the rules of the
game Countries have taken cultural and political differences into account when
drafting their electoral legislation and regulations.
One
of the primary participants in the elections is Political Parties, namely Udub,
Kulmiye and Ucid. Political parties compete in elections in order to win
public office and run the government. The type of national system that has
developed directly affects the nature of the integrity issues and the types of
mechanisms needed to address those problems. For example, is it a two-party or
a multi-party system? Is there a dominant party or parties that receive
preferential treatment or access to public resources for election purposes?
Are smaller parties excluded? Is the multi-party political party system so new
that many parties are still in the formative stage? Each one will generate a
different kind of integrity issue.
Money
has always been a factor in politics and elections. But the amount of money
spent in pursuit of public office today has brought new dimensions to an old
problem. Money, or things of material value, can be used as an incentive to
vote for a particular candidate, to obtain a lucrative electoral contract, or
to pay off a corrupt election official to tamper with the election results.
Each political culture forms the way in which money is used. The fact that so
much money is being spent on election campaigning and, with studies suggesting
that the winner of an election is often the one who spends the most money,
makes campaign financing one of the key integrity issues for almost every
election.
Trust
in the electoral system and its institutions is an important variable when
discussing election integrity and the mechanisms needed to protect election
integrity. In countries where there is a high degree of trust, the government
routinely administers elections and there is little concern by the voters or
candidates that the government will manipulate the process or election
results. However, in countries with little trust in government institutions or
in the other political parties to follow the rules, mistrust is a major
factor. The degree of mistrust helps determine the institutional and
administrative frameworks for the elections, and the additional safeguard
mechanisms that will be needed to protect the integrity of the process.
Why
do some candidates cheat? Perhaps their genetic structure has something to do
with it, but an answer can be capsulized in one word: MISTRUST. Candidates
really have no desire to cheat but because of mistrust some of them do. Those
who cheat say: Do unto others before they do unto you. As a result, we become
paranoid. We do not trust the candidates.
We do not even trust the voters. That is why we put indelible ink on
their fingers by assuming that they will vote again unless they are prevented
from doing so. In effect, the presumption of innocence has been effectively
reversed.
The
result of this mistrust is three fold:
One:
We have grotesque provisions of law to prevent cheating and fraud. The funny
thing is, the more we tighten our election laws, the more the few who are so
inclined will finds ways to violate the law and avoid getting caught.
Two:
The conduct of the elections become too expensive for the government. Ballot
boxes which look like tanks, self-locking metal seals, paper seals, padlocks,
special election paper, watermarks, voting booths, indelible ink, etc. costs
millions of pesos which could be better utilized for the benefit of our less
fortunate countrymen.
Three:
Nobody admits defeat. As a result, pre-proclamation controversies and election
contests abound, a continuing nightmare for the Udub and Kulmiye, and
ultimately, the Supreme Court.
Dr.
Shacabi
Email:
Shacabi@yahoo.com
