February 2, 2015 | Daily Monitoring Report.

Main Story

Mogadishu Mayor: “there has been tax evasion for 25 years, now is the time to pay”

02 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 184 words

The Governor of Banadir Region who doubles up as Mogadishu’s Mayor Hassan Husein Mungab has reminded the business people in Mogadishu that they have not paid taxes for more than 25 years, and told them it’s time to pay now. He was speaking as a ceremony of tar road construction project in Mogadishu; the mayor applauded the Somali Chamber of Commerce who funded the project. “This is %100 Somali funded and Somali owned, I call upon the business people to contribute the road construction” said the mayor.

He warned those who are not willing to pay will face the might of the law. “Those of you who have business and are not willing to pay, I can tell you that we will send the police and security forces and will extract forcefully” said the irate mayor. The two tarred roads are one kilo meter long each, one runs from Hawlwadaag Interjection to Bar Ubah, the other runs from Adan Adde Interjection to Arwo Idko, both are in the Bakara Market. Mungab has plans to construct all city roads by contribution from members of the public and businesses.

Key Headlines

Mogadishu Mayor: “there has been tax evasion for 25 Years now is the time to pay” (Radio Goobjoog)
Fighting erupts in South Galkayo (Radio Danan)
Prominent Somali academic dies (Hiraan Online)
Somaliland puts seized weapons shipment on display (Garowe Online)
AU delegation reaches Baidoa (Radio Goobjoog)
Somali region gets a second micro finance institutions (Addisfortune.net)
Foreign nationals urged to stay away from townships (SABC News)
Somali protesters demand teacher resign over Mohammed cartoons (Seattleglobalist)
As Somali-American fights no-fly list FBI says his brother is most wanted (CS Monitor)

SOMALI MEDIA

IDPs lead harsh life in and around Mogadishu

02 Feb – Source: Radio Danan – 122 Words

Some of the IDPs in and around Mogadishu live a harsh life. They can hardly get basic needs of life. Some of them suffer from a poor health as they cannot afford healthcare for themselves. Most of the IDP camps along Mogadishu-Afgoye Highway do not have health centres or hospitals. Ibraahim Jeerow Adan is an IDP camp administrator. He told Danan Radio in Mogadishu about the plights of the IDPs in the camp where he works. “There are many IDPs in this camp. The don’t have supply of water and other basic necessities. We call for assistance”. Mr. Jeerow said. IDPs in and around Mogadishu nowadays more frequently complain about harsh living conditions and according to them they don’t get enough assistance.

Mogadishu Mayor: “there has been tax evasion for 25 years, now is the time to pay”

02 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 184 words

Fighting erupts in South Galkayo

02 Feb – Source: Radio Danan – 87 Words

Clan militias have clashed in south Galkayo town this morning. The fighting erupted when one of the militias tried to remove roadblocks that were being manned by the other militants. At least one person died in the fighting while two others were wounded. Casualty figures may however rise. Galmudug police have been deployed there and they managed to restore law and order there. Residents said they were frightened by the clashes when the fighting erupted. Galmudug authorities have not spoken about the clashes.

Prominent Somali academic dies

01 Feb – Source: Hiraan Online – 139 words
Hussein Sheikh Ahmed Kadare, one of Somalia’s most renowned educators and advocates of the Somali language has died in Mogadishu on Sunday. He was 81 years old. Kadare , died at a hospital in Mogadishu after a short unspecified illness, according his family. Born in Adale, a farming village in Lower Shabelle region in 1934, he wrote legendary books including “Socdaalkii Sodonka Maalmood’ and “Warsame iyo Waasuge”. Having spent a great deal of his time promoting the impoverished nation’s artistic values, Mr. Kadare, a languages lecturer has also taught at universities in and outside Somalia. Mr. Kadare was proud of his tradition and culture, especially Somali poetry. He’s survived by children and wife.

Somaliland puts seized weapons on display

01 Feb – Source: Garowe Online – 179 Words

Despite growing concerns by Puntland, Somaliland’s separatist administration has put seized weapons from a ship on public display, Garowe Online reports. During a parade-like event that attracted dozens of journalists, Somaliland said the arms seized on MV Shakir, a Sudanese-registered ship included heavy weapons such as tanks, artillery pieces and modern combat vehicles. On Thursday, authorities denied experts from United Nations Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea entry into Berbera seaport where offloading was underway.

The following day, Somaliland’s neighbor to the east, Puntland expressed great concern over the fate of the seized weapons shipment, saying it could fall into the hands of terrorists operating in the rugged terrain of Galgala. Somaliland’s Minister for Security called allegations leveled against the breakaway region ‘unfounded and fabricated’. Puntland lambasted Somaliland for importing the weapons in violation of the UN’s arms embargo at the height of civil war in 1992. Somaliland, located in northern Somalia declared its independence from the rest of the country as de facto sovereign state but it has not been recognized internationally yet.

AU delegation reaches Baidoa

01 Feb – Source: Radio Goobjoog – 144 Words
High ranked AU delegation led by the Deputy Head of AMISOM, Hon. Lydia Wanyoto Mutende has touched down in Baidoa, the administrative capital South-west state.The delegates took meeting with some of the South-west State officials and then proceeded to tour Baidoa general hospital.

In the hospital they met with the Minster for Health Isaaq Ali Subag, the director of the hospital and the health workers. Afterwards, the minister and Hon. Lydia Wanyoto Mutende held joint press conference which they explained the issues discussed in their meeting. The minister for health speaking at press conference urged the delegates to play an important role in the resumption of health centres which have not been functioning a long time due to expense. Lastly Hon. Lydia Wanyoto pledged that they will expand their support and take on the reconstruction health centres and other social amenities in South-west State.

REGIONAL MEDIA

Somali region gets a second micro finance institutions

01 Feb – Source: Addisfortune.net – 555 Words

The Somlai Region is going to open a second Micro Finance Institution from which is going to extend loans from 10pc to 20pc. This will be the second in the region. Rays MFI received approval from the National Bank of Ethiopia on January 26, 2015, which will enable it to commence operations. This happened four years after the first, the Somali MFI, opened its office in the region.

Starting Monday, February 2, 2015, its Jigjiga and Gode Branches will be open to provide full microfinance services, according to Abdiaziz Hassan, manager of Rays MFI. And in three weeks, the Addis Abeba, Wajale, Hargelle and Fik branches will follow. The plan for the year includes 11 branches across Somali Region, Dire Dewa and Addis Abeba. Rays MFI was established in July 2014 by six people, fulfilling the required 200,000 Br minimum paid-up capital.

Group Guaranteed Loan (GGL), which is a mechanism that allows a group of individuals to provide collateral or loan guarantee through a group repayment pledge is one of the loan services Rays will provide for people with low income. The initial average loan amount for the first cycle of clients reaches 4,000 Br in the first year of operation, which will be higher after that, with 10pc to 20pc loan interest rate per annum. Rays also provides loans to cooperatives through co-signatory or an immovable asset or vehicle as loan collateral. The average loan amount for first cycle loans is 7,500 Br in the first year of operation, which will increase after that. The loan term is one year with monthly repayment frequency with 10pc loan interest rate per annum.

INTERNATIONAL MEDIA

Foreign nationals urged to stay away from townships

02 Feb – Source: SABC News – 267 Words

Chairperson of the Somali community board has urged foreign nationals not to return to the townships for now. The board’s chairperson Amir Schaik says tensions could erupt again after January’s looting and violence incidences. Violence erupted in Soweto after a teenager, Siphiwe Mahori, who allegedly tried to loot a foreigner’s store was shot dead. The incident sparked violence in other townships including Boipatong and Kagiso. Residents went on a rampage looting foreign owned stores. This resulted in the death of five other people in Soweto. Police were deployed to the areas and the provincial government called for calm. The four Somali nationals who allegedly shot and killed Mahori will appear at the Atteridgeville Magistrate’s Court in Pretoria.

Somali protesters demand teacher resign over Mohammed cartoons

01 Feb – Source: Seattleglobalist – 503 Words

Controversy over cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed hit home in Seattle recently, culminating in a protest outside of southend refugee service provider on Friday. A group of Somali Americans gathered outside the Refugee Women’s Alliance(ReWA) on Martin Luther King, Jr. Way to demand the resignation of a teacher who showed the cartoons to her teenage students on the day after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris.

“We’re not gonna be silent when it’s something that’s not right,” said Hassan Aden, who was one of between 15 to 20 people who attended the protest. “We’re trying to show that we’re not happy with what she did.” The teacher, Deepa Bhandaru, recently earned her Ph.D from the UW Political Science department, and works for ReWA teaching a free class on world affairs for youth, where she showed the cartoons during a lesson on free speech and religious pluralism.

As Somali-American fights no-fly list, FBI says his brother is most wanted

01 Feb – Source: CS Monitor – 740 Words

A federal judge on Friday asked whether the US government really has the right to keep people like Gulet Mohamed, a Virginia-basedSomali-American, from flying without telling them why and giving them due process to fight such a designation. In a twist that highlights the stakes, the FBI one day earlier put Liban Mohamed, Gulet’s brother, on its most-wanted terrorists list, alleging he has given material support to Al Shabab, the Somali-based terror group blamed for a deadly four-day attack in the Westgate Mall in Kenya in 2013. The FBI has put a $50,000 bounty out on Liban Mohamed, saying he’s dangerous because of alleged weapons training and an intimate knowledge of Washington, D.C., where he worked as a cabbie until 2012. A lawyer for Gulet Mohamed called the allegations baseless.

Last June, Federal Appeals Court Judge Anna Brown found part of the no-fly-list policy unconstitutional, ordering the US government to formulate a due process provision to give fliers a meaningful way to contest their inclusion on the list. Some 20,000 people, including 500 US citizens, are on the list, the FBI disclosed in 2014. While Judge Trenga made no ruling on Friday, he asked several pointed questions of government attorneys at the hearing, including whether the US had ever created another program that deprived people of their liberty with near zero transparency. US authorities have said the list is, in fact, constitutional, since travelers can find other modes of transportation.The secret no-fly list came into effect after Al Qaeda terrorists hijacked four jetliners and used them to attack the Pentagon and the two towers of the World Trade Center. The list is part of a well-guarded and concerted US anti-terror effort that critics say at times has skirted the balance between national security and constitutional rights.

SOCIAL MEDIA

CULTURE / OPINION / EDITORIAL / ANALYSIS / BLOGS/ DISCUSSION BOARDS

“The distortion of public goodwill and the subsequence of unpopularity in public institutions can kill the efforts toward a prosperous future for all. And equity that flourishes and enriches trust and faith in politics is inescapable for any statebuilding in the 21st century”

Is democratic election possible in Somalia in 2016?

02 Feb – Source: Radio RBC – 972 Words

Over the past seven years, considerable progress has been made across Somalia. By the virtue of having executive institutions, and somewhat basic constitution, the spirit and the hope of the average person almost tripled. For the first time, people spotted a glimpse of lightthat things may change for the better. Nonetheless, public management reforms to enhance institutional performance and citizenry involvement in public management accountability continues to be an important issue as the country departs from the darker days of the civil war.

Notwithstanding the remarkable changes over the last years, the rectitude in governance, including accountability of public institutions, transparency of public decisionmaking, and enforceable ethical standards remained questionable. As Waheduzzaman (2010) asserted, these elements have “significant impact on the institutionalization of democratic political institutions and processes as well as on poverty eradication.” There appears a citizenry outcry that calls for empirical investigations; and hence, validating a test on any of these issues. 1Objectives The core objective of this survey was to determine and understand patterns of experiences and descriptions of tastes of participants in relation to what the wider public thinks.

“While the official banking system was failing and losing public confidence, an informal parallel (black) market banking system was emerging and growing in strength. To fill the gap left by the official banking system, a multitude of small parallel banks started providing banking services, including cashing cheques at heavy discount, converting currency, safekeeping of money and providing small scale lending facilities”

Somalia: the long road to currency reform

02 Feb – Source: Wardheernews – 777 Words

In January 2010, the then Transitional National Government ordered the printing of Somali shilling banknotes worth 5 trillion from Sudan at the cost of US$ 17 million. However, the delivery of this money was halted after meeting a strong opposition from the International community, Puntland and concerned Somali citizen on the grounds believed that the Government has not done the preparatory work needed to introduce a new currency and that, absent any effective monetary policy, the currency will only add to the monetary chaos already afflicting the country.

A new Somali Federal Government came to power in September 2012. It also had to refrain from importing the banknotes from Sudan although under pressure to print money. As of to date the banknotes lie idle in the safes of the Sudanese printing company and their delivery has been postponed to an unknown future. This paper discusses the challenges that the government faces in introducing a new currency, the preparatory work it has to undertake before putting such currency in circulation and the mechanism through which it can create a strong and credible national currency.

Historical context In the 1980s, before the collapse of the Somali state, Somalia has had a very distressing monetary experience marked by financial chaos, currency collapse, runaway inflation and bank failure. By 1989, the whole banking system either collapsed or was on the verge of collapsing owing to too much government involvement, mismanagement and corruption. The Central bank lost control of money supply and became mainly a tool for financing the government’s huge budget deficit; the Commercial and Savings Bank was declared bankrupt; and the Somali Development Bank was incapacitated because of lack of resources.

“We are also here as South Africans concerned about the issue of xenophobia…We can’t live with criminals … you can’t steal from other people.”

South Africa: ‘foreign business owners are not the enemy’

02 Feb – Source: Mail & Gaurdian – 999 Words

Foreign business owners are not the problem in South Africa – corruption is. This was the message delivered by the Democratic Alliance at a meeting at the litter-strewn Monometsie Park in Soweto on Sunday. A speech to the modestly-sized crowd dressed in blue was delivered by Mmusi Maimane, the opposition party’s leader in the National Assembly, and touched on all the areas where political points could be scored: it ranged from the electricity crisis to the contentious suspension of Hawks boss Anwa Dramat. But the crux of the message was that anger at foreign nationals was misplaced and really ought to be aimed at the ANC-led government and its failure to create jobs and to help South Africans to start small businesses. “Foreign business owners are not the enemy. The real enemy is a corrupt government that has taken the power from the people in order to make themselves rich,” Maimane said.

The violence and looting was sparked by the death of a 14-year-old boy who was allegedly shot by a Somali shop owner when attempting to rob a store in Soweto. Since then the incidents targeting foreign-owned businesses have spread to numerous areas including Diepsloot and Kagiso on Johannesburg’s Westrand, Langlaagte and Alexandra. South African businesses remain open at the Dobsonville centre, located on the perimeter of the park where the meeting was held. But two stores which are owned by foreign nationals (locals say one is owned by Pakistanis and the other by Somalis) have shut their doors after looters began to target foreign-owned businesses, particularly spaza shops, in Soweto over two weeks ago.

One business owner at the Dobsonville centre points to the Somali-owned store named Solly’s Supermarket. “The guys over there came with the police and took the stock,” he said. “But the other one the boys were looting. They came through the roof. They took everything.” He said people have mixed feelings about foreign nationals owning businesses. “For us as business people it is not helpful for us to create jobs. These guys come with big money.”

Top tweets

@Binturaab @RasnaWarah The Turks are doing what the so-called civilised world has failed to do for 24 years in Somalia. Commitment & contentment!

@SomaliaNewsroom NGOs in #Somalia often take photographic evidence of “projects” without actually completing them http://www.eurasiareview.com/30012015-sinking

@IfrahAhmedfgm We need to protect girls Somalia, Approximately 6.5 million Somali girls and women have undergone female genital mutilation/cutting ((FGM/C)

@Somaliupdate Monthly Round-Up of @NUSOJ_SomaliaPress Freedom Monitoring #Somalia #pressfreedom http://somaliupdate.com/article

@OsmanOmar2016 Work against Corruption, bring peace and development in Somalia is the key for Investment.

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Image of the day Somalia MPs vote to approve prime minister’s request for 10-day extension to complete his newly appointed cabinet.

Photo: @Daudoo