Former Mogadishu mayor recalls deadliest attack
By FRED OLUOCH
Monday October 15, 2018
Former Mayor of Mogadishu, Mr Thabit Abdi Mohammed. FILE | NATION MEDIA GROUPAds By Google
The challenge is that the security structure of Mogadishu remains the same. It has never been under the local administration but under the Federal Government. When I was the mayor, we came up with a proposal to establish the Banadir Regional Security Plan to place the city’s security under the mayor. This plan had civilian oversight component. For instance, when you look at Puntland, Jubbaland, Somaliland, they are relatively safer than Mogadishu, simply because there is the peoples’ ownership of security. The first beneficiaries of security are the locals and they tend to take more care if given the responsibility. As long as we have the current security structure, which is controlled by the Federal Government, it would be very difficult to manage.
Did your attempt to create separate security arrangement for Mogadishu lead to your removal?
Changes will always be there until such a time when the Mogadishu residents will have the opportunity to elect their mayor. However, I was lobbying for the Somalia National Security forces' restructuring. It has been under the central government all those years, but now that Somalia has adopted a federal system, it has to be adjusted accordingly to bring about accountability. The belief is that all the six regions of Somalia—Banadir region that includes Mogadishu, Puntland, Galmudug, Hirshabelle, South West State and Jubaland, must be in charge of their own security. The Federal Government cannot observe all these regions, it has to delegate which has the advantage the work to those closer to the people.
Do you think the current political stalemate between the federal government and the regional state will end soon?
I think they will ultimately find a solution because Somalia has made so many positive steps that we cannot agree to go back to where we came from. Since federal system is new to Somalia, perfecting it will take time. But it is the duty of the federal government to realise that federal states are constitutional and the centre must work with them. I have spoken to some of the leaders of the region and some of their concerns are genuine. One of them is the restructuring of security institutions. There can be no security without political stability and harmonious co-existence between the centre and the states.
Former Mogadishu mayor recalls deadliest attack
Can you relate what happened on October 14, 2017 and how you reacted as the Mayor of Mogadishu? I had just entered my office at the Mogadishu Municipality Headquarters when the blast went off and shook almost the entire city. I was horrified that I