BAAQ KA SOO BAXAY UGAASKA GADABURSI & QURBO JOOGTA WAQOOYIGA AMEERIKA

September 30, 2010

By staff-reporter

Awdalpress(Ottawa) 30-Sept-2010-Anagoo ah qurba joogta Reer Awdal, Salal iyo Gabiley oo ay weheliyaan Ururada TLC & ARDAA. Iyadoo aan xog-ogaal u nahay isbadalka siyaasadeed ee ku dhisan  qabiilka raba in uu ka amar ku taagleeyo heshiis laba reer dhexmaray in si sinaan, cadaalad iyo maamul daacad  laga yahay la wada samaysto.
Anagoo ka warqabna war saxaafadeedkii odey dhaqmeedyada (Salaadiinta) gobollada galbeed ee isugu jiray warbixin dhacdooyin si isdaba jooga ah u dhacay ee ay maamulka Hargeysa ku dhaliileen tixgelin la’aanta codsiyadoodii hore.  Markaan aragnay sida badheedka ah ee khaladaadkii uu galay taliyaha ciidamada Gen.Nuux Taani, hasayeeshee, si badheedh ah loogu soo leexiyey Gen. Maxamed Osman Ibraahim (Xudhuun).  Haddii aannu nahay qurba joogta ku nool Waqooyiga Ameerika oo uu hogaaminayo Ugaaska Gadabuursi Ugaas Cabdirashiid Ugaas Rooble Ugaas Doodi, waxaan soo jeedinaynaa go’aamada hoos ku xusan oo isugu jira bogaadin, tusaalayn iyo digniin:
1.      Waxaan si buuxda u taageeraynaa bayaankii Salaadiinta Gobollada Awdal, Salal iyo Gabiley.
2.      Waxaan bogaadin iyo hambalyo u diraynaa bulshada sadexdaas gobol ee ka gilgilatay cadaalad darada isbiirsatay, dhaga adayga, cagajuglaynta iyo balan qaadyada beenta ah ee ku salaysan siyaasadda nifaaqa ah ee maamulada kala dambeeyey ee Hargeysa ay ku sifoobeen.
3.      Waxaan uga digaynaa maamulka Hargeysa ee dhaqan galinaya siyaasadii jabahadii SNM in heshiiskii labada reer (Gadabuursi & Isaaq) ee Boorama lagu soo dhisay, uusan mar labaad Boorama ku burburin.
4.      Qurba joogtu markay warar lagu kalsoon yahay ay ka heshay bulshadeeda dalkii ku sugan, in maamulka Hargeysa aanay sinaba uga aqbalayn inay maamulka Gobolladaas ay keenaan dad aan isir iyo ehel u ahayn.  Haddii taasi dhacdana ay jawaabtu noqon doonto mid nabad- galyada khal khal weyn gelin doonta.
5.      Waxaan ugu balan qaadaynaa  bulsho weynta gobolladaas inaan HIIL & HOOBA la garab joogno si ay uga midho dhaliyaan badbaadada danahooga siyaasad-dhaqaale iyo xuquuqdooda aas-aasiga ah.
6.      Waxaan ku wargalinayaa maamulka jabhadaysan ee Hargeysa, haddii aanu si deg deg ah uga waantoobin talaabooyinkaas qaawan ee qabiilka ku salaysan, in wixii ka yimaada gudaha iyo dibedaba ay masuuliyadooda iyagu iska leeyihiin.
7.      Waxaan u soo jeedinaynaa Siyaasiyiinta Gadabuursi ee ku sugan Hargeysa in ay si deg deg ah uga hawlgalaan Gobolladii laga soo doortay, iyagoo si foojigan u dhageysanaya dareenka bulsha weynta soo dooratay ooy tageero siiyaan.
8.      Waxaan si cad ugu sheegaynaa maamulka Hargeysa in miisaan la’anta maamul kasta oo ka jira Somaliland iyo shaqaalaba ay tahay mid ummadda Gobolladaas iyo qurba jooguba ayna dib dambe u oggolaan doonin oo ilaa la dheeli tiro nidaamka maamul kasta siiba ciidamada amniga, guurtida, baarlamanka, xukuumada, iyo shaqaalahaba.
9.      Gen. Xudhuun badalkiisu waa hadal layska yidhi cidina kama qaadi mayso,umanaya malaynyo inuu aqbali doono,inuu ciidankii 17sanno dhisayay uu maanta aayar ka dhaqaaqo,waxaan leenahay ,walaalkayo maxamed xudhuun ha ku laabto ciidankiisii wixii baahi ah ee ciidanku qabana anaa dabooli.Mana ogolin in la soo faragaliyo Xuduun iyo Ciidankiisa.
Dhacdooyan isa soo taraya ee ku beegsanyo madaxda maamulka kaga jirtay Gadabuursi waxa uu ka dhigay tusbax furmay, waa hordhac in maamullada Gobolada Awdal , Salal & Gabiley laga fogeeyo madaxda,qof ku abtirsada magaca Gadabuursi. Siilaanyo muu hilmaahay inuu Rayaale si sharaf leh uu xukunka ugu wareejiyay isagoo wax shuruud ah ama gorgortan ku xidhin.
Qorshaha Siilaanyo iyo SNM way socon doontaa illa la gaadho marxalad la mid ah tii uu ka gabyey halyeygii  iyo  geesigii weynaa ee Sayid Maxamed Cabdille Xasan markii uu tiriyey tixdan hoos ku xusan:
“Dallacaad jacayl baad kurtin noola dirirteene 
Dubaaqina waxa saa u galay daara buuxsade e                                                                  
Dux kama heshaan farenji aad dul i dhigataane                                                                
Dabin buu idiin qoolayaa waydin dagayaaye 
Dirhamkuu idiin qubahayaad dir u go’aysaane                                                             
 Marka hore dabkuu idinka dhigi dumar sidiisiiye                                                         
Marka xigga dalkuu indin ku odhan duunyo dhaafsada e
Marka xigga dushuu idinka rari sida dameeraaye”
Qorshuhuna wuxuu yahay:
“Marka xiggana Ceelbardaaluu  ku darsan degaladii horre e                                     
Dilla iyo Lughayaana loo dan leeyahaye”
Gabaygan waxuu guubaabo u yahay bulshoweynta Gadabuursi ee ku nool Gobollada aan kor ku xusnay, khaas ahaan inta ka tirsan maamullada cadaalo darada ku sifoobay, waxaana aan ugana digaynaa cawaaqib xummada iyo khatarta ay kala kulmi doonaan daallimiinta uu hogaaminayo maamulka Hargeysa,   Gabaygani wuxuu baraarujinayaa qof kasta oo Gadabuursiya oo maamulkan ka tirsan inuu fahmo khatarta  soo socota iyo waxa lala damacsan yahay. “Walaalkii loo xiiryoow adiguna soo qoyso”.
Waxaan Ilaahay (SWT) uga baryayaa in Ummaadda Gobolladaas ee xushmadda, qaddarinta, dal jacaylka iyo dulqaadka faraha badan ku soo caano maashay inuu uu siiyo is-afgarad, midnimo iyo adkaysi ay u yeeshaan dulmiga iyo cadaalad darada soo waajahday. Si xikmadaysanna ay u xoreeyaan dadkooda iyo degaankoodaba. Aamiin.  Wa Bilaahi Tawfiiq.
UGAASKA GADABUURSI
UGAAS C/RASHIID UGAAS ROOBLE UGAAS DODI  .
WA BILAAHI TAWFIIQ                                                                
Ottawa. Canada

Hard earned Somaliland Democracy May be on the Verge of Collapse

Hard earned Somaliland Democracy May be on the Verge of Collapse

Written by Medeshivalley.com

Sep 28, 2010 at 07:38 PM

Hard earned Somaliland democracy may be on the verge of collapse because of the current political atmosphere created by the policy of revenge that the new Somaliland government opted to pursue. Poor decision making coupled with revenge has become source of unrest among the Somaliland public both in Awdal and Togdheer as well as in Sool and Sanaag. For example, the recent decision by the government to replace a commander in Awdal region caused an uproar among the Sultans of the region who warned the government about the consequences of the change. In less than a day the Government of Somaliland changed its mind and decided not to pursue the change order. Another event that took place at Hargeisa airport was similar to the above. The ex-head of Somaliland Bank Mr. Abdirahman Duale was prevented boarding a plane to Djibouti for business trip. The people of Togdheer saw this as unconstitutional and a revengeful act and threatened to stage massive demonstrations. Again the government of Somaliland changed its decision to ban the ex-governor from travelling abroad and decided to publically apologise to him ( see Togdhheer: http://www.togdheernews.com//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5354&Itemid=10)Events like this are undermining the trust that the people of Somaliland had for their elected leaders. Much time and effort has been spent by Silanyo government in removing all UDUB supporters from the government quarters. The matter is now getting dirty and out of hand and could lead to public unrest and continuous demonstrations in many regions of Somaliland.Neither the interior minister nor the finance has any sort of experience in good governance and have contributed to dirty politics of revenge to the Somaliland political system since their appointment.Both men have been jailed in Mandheera prison by the previous Somaliland government for various acts of undermining Somaliland security. They are both suspected to be Islamists that are very close to Al Shabaab. For example: The Son of the current finance minister was killed in Mogadishu in 2006 while fighting along the Islamist group in Mogadishu. He was Briton who left Britain to fight along the terrorists in Somalia.The minister of Interior is also known for being from South Somalia and a close relative and personal doctor of the late dictator Siyad Barre who carried out the genocide against the people of Somaliland in the late eighties and early nineties. The doctor has been serving  Siyad Barre until he was deposed in 1991.The son of the current minister of Religious affairs is also and active leader of Al Shabab wing in Somalia ( see: http://www.medeshivalley.com/2010/09/son-of-somaliland-minister-al-shabaab.html)All the events stated above indicate that the hard earned Somaliland democracy is on the verge of collapse due to poor leadership on the part of the newly elected government of Somaliland. The government lacks both quality and sincerity . Much praise has been said by the West and other stakeholders on the recent ambiguous Somaliland elections. It is now becoming a reality that the people of Somaliland made the wrong choice in electing Kulmiye leadership that has now lost direction. Medeshivalley.com

Assistant Secretary Carson Briefs on UN Meetings on Uganda and Somalia

Urgent Press release from: TOL LEADERSHIP COUNCIL (TLC)

September 24, 2010

By staff-reporter

A call for peace and achieving the common good                                       
To: Somaliland, Ethiopia and the Community of Awdal/Salal regions
MINNEAPOLIS, U.S.A, SEPTEMBER 24, 2010–We, The Tol Leadership Council (TLC), founded by a group of concerned scholars, professionals and community leaders of the Gadaboursi (hereafter referred to by the traditional name Tol) at a convention held on April 1-3, 2010 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, in an effort to launch the long process of reinvigorating the traditional Somali leadership while envisioning modernized innovations for the Tol in the Horn of Africa and around the world, have followed with great concern the recent chain of unwelcome incidents in the Awdal/Salal regions in Somaliland.
These incidents included the landing of unknown and heavily armed militia on the coastal area between Zeila and Lughaya , the sporadic and spontaneous mass uprisings in Borama,  the reported entry of Ethiopian military personnel in Awdal and Salal regions,  and the obvious lack of coordinated and efficacious actions by  the authorities of Somaliland in dealing with the situation.
As peace and stability have come to be held as a singular achievement and, thus, a source of pride among the people of Somaliland over the recent years, we have been deeply disturbed by the possible repercussions of such events on the public safety of citizens, the security of the country, the prevailing communal harmony between Somaliland communities, and the government’s ability to contain any pernicious fallout from these incidents.
Having faith in the wisdom of the Awdal/Salal communities and the judicious awareness of the Somaliland authorities, and realizing the concern of all parties, including Ethiopia, for the peace and stability in the Horn of African region, we call upon:
1. Awdal/Salal Communities:

1. A.     The communities in Awdal/Salal regions to make concerted and conscientious efforts to avoid anything that could jeopardize their peace and stability, their unity, their communal harmony with neighboring communities and the trust they have with the Government.
2. B.     The communities to exercise their right to express their legitimate grievances through the proper governmental and communal channels while, at all times, reining in their passions and keeping in mind that what harms the peace in one area can ruin the peace of the whole country  — resulting in making losers of all.
3. C.     The communities to handle their issues with optimum situational intelligence for which the people of the Awdal/Salal regions are known and to assist the Government in containing the situation by carrying out an adroit investigation that will address any security lapses to the satisfaction of their community.

11. The Somaliland Government: 

1. A.     Although we recognize that the Government is still new and has yet to plant its feet firmly on the ground, it is also imperative that shirking its responsibility under the pretext of being in a transitional mode or shifting the blame to previous situations will not absolve it of its own obligation in safeguarding the security of the country and the safety of its citizens.
2. B.     We, therefore, urge the Government to acknowledge its shortcomings, accept the blame where it is due and take immediate action to rectify it in order to earn and sustain the esteem of the people.
3. C.     We also press upon the Government to avoid taking any unwarranted actions or issuing statements that could inflame emotions and erode the citizens’ confidence in the authority of the Government. It should be a primary conviction of the government that earning the trust of the citizens is a perpetual task continuously tested, but particularly after an electoral victory.
4. D.    It is, indeed, the responsibility of the Government to redress the legitimate grievances and security concerns of the Awdal/Salal communities and those in other parts of the country and not to leave issues to fester and grow until they reach the point of eruption.  We urge the Government to take immediate steps to look into these issues in close coordination with the community leaders of Awdal/Salal regions and their political representatives.
5. E.     As upholding justice is one of the paramount responsibilities of a viable public authority, we stress with the Government to bring those who murdered the innocent passengers on the road between Kalabaydh and Dilla to face the full weight of the law. The fact that the previous Administration had failed to apprehend these fugitives should NOT warrant that they remain free. Rendering justice to whomever it is due is among the most crucial responsibilities of public authority, and has no timeframe.  Arresting those who committed this heinous crime and bringing them before a court of law will go a long way in uncoiling bitterness and making the citizens feel safe, and secure in protection of their rights.  Moreover, justice served to the families of the victims is bound to thicken the loyalty of the citizens to public leaders and institutions.

111. The Ethiopian Government: 

1. A.      We recognize the legitimate concerns of the Ethiopian Government over the security of its country and the protection of its citizens. Nonetheless, we remind those authorities that maintaining the friendship and good neighborly ties that they have built with Somaliland over the years obligates them to avoid taking any rash and unilateral action that could jeopardize such long term relations and, consequently, usher in a state of insecurity and disorder to the whole region.
2. B.     We, therefore, ask the Ethiopian Government to understand the paramount importance of reinforcing mutual trust through continued consultations and cooperation with Somaliland on all issues related to mutual security.
3. C.     We would like to strongly urge them to avoid taking any unilateral military action or sending any military personnel to any area of Somaliland without the prior consent and pre-arranged measures with the Somaliland Government and local community leaders.
4. D.    It should be known to the Ethiopian Government that any unilateral military incursions to hunt down perceived enemies without the prior knowledge and coordination with Somaliland authorities will only invoke righteous rage on the part of the people of Somaliland against Ethiopia. The fallout of any such incidents will be grave, undermining regional peace and stability and, therefore, playing into the hands of the extremist forces that are determined to wreak havoc upon the shared goals of the two countries: peace and development. 

Finally, we want to goad all the parties to resort to sagacity as a mode of thinking and acting and, as a result, exercise extreme caution and patience in dealing with the delicate security situation. To act in ways that would guarantee the common well being of all the peoples of the Horn of Africa is the gold standard for political maturity and effective leadership.
About TLC:
The Tol Leadership Council (TLC), founded on April1-3, 2010 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA, to be the premier Tol organization that unites all Tol and has the conviction and capabilities to facilitate the establishment of a Tol in the Horn of Africa and around the world that is united; prosperous; at peace with itself and its neighbors; and able to effectively advance and safeguard the common social, economic, and human rights of its people.
For further details kindly contact:
Communication Office:
Email: ( tlc@tolleadershipcouncil.org or contacts@tolleadershipcouncil.org )
Website: http://tolleadershipcouncil.org/

Somalia named the worst place to go to school AFP Wednesday, 22 September 2010

Somalia, stricken by more than two decades of civil war, has been declared the world's worst place to go to school, in a new report released Monday.

The battle for Mogadishu becomes more bitter by the day and aid agencies in operating in the east African country accuse Somali war lords of forcibly enlisting children into their militias.

"Ongoing conflict, civil unrest and fragility have had a catastrophic effect on education, with the most recent data estimating that only 10 percent of children are enrolled in primary school," said the Global Campaign for Education (GCE) report, released on the sidelines of the UN Millennium Development Goals summit.

Somalia was one of four countries where more than 70 percent of the population is illiterate, GCE said.

It came bottom of a table of the world's 60 poorest countries, just behind Eritrea, Haiti, Comoros, Ethiopia, Chad and Burkina Faso.

"The 'School Report' table findings paint a stark picture of the lives of children from around 60 of the poorest countries, demonstrating that a dramatic upscaling of effort is needed in order to give the next generation better prospects than their parents," said the report.

"A country like Chad, languishing close to the bottom of our table, has shocking indicators across the board: just 14 percent of its population go to school for five years, child labor and early marriage are rife, and two-thirds of adults cannot read or write."

The report said Nigeria has more children out of education than any other country in the world - 8.2 million.

"This is made all the more appalling by the fact that Nigeria is far from poor, by African standards. On paper at least it is among the continent's richest countries, the world's sixth largest producer of crude oil."

GCE, which was backed by aid groups such as Oxfam, Save The Children and Action Aid, in making the report, said that "decades of failure to invest in education have left the basic school system hardly functioning" in Nigeria.

Adult illiteracy remains "a major stain" on efforts to end poverty with 759 million adults, the majority of them women, unable to read and write, said the campaign.

Half of the illiterate adults in the world live in South Asia, particularly in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. "Illiterate adults and their families struggle without even the most basic of skills to navigate life, access healthcare for their families and enter the labour market," said the report.

Haiti has always had a poor education record and was bottom of the rankings in 2008, with just half of children attending primary schools. The earthquake in January has made education in the impoverished state even more desperate, with 80 percent of schools destroyed.

GCE said that fewer than 20 percent of Afghan women are literate and barely any girls in rural areas were allowed to go to school.

The campaign criticised wealthy countries for failing to provide promised funds for education.

The report also gave marks to donor countries for their contribution to the financing needed for universal education, based on their respective wealth. Norway came top and the United States bottom.

"The miserly performance of the G8 nations plays a major part in holding back progress - some 87 percent of the gap is attributable to their failure to pay up," said the report.

Dr. Samatar American and Islam

Estimated 20,000 Americans Convert to Islam Each Year

 Shunning extremism on both sides

September 10, 2010

By staff-reporter

Awdalpress – Washington – Burning the Quran, what burning! As President Obama rightly said this is just “a stunt” and without the limelight given to it by the sensation-seeking, globalized media that makes a mountain out of a molehill, Pastor Terry Jones would have remained an unknown pastor holed up in his equally unknown Dove World Outreach Center.
His prime objective was to bring world attention to himself and to his church and he succeeded; as the media brouhaha that is following his antics has just given him that.
One cannot blame the media for sniffing the source of news but it is the Muslims who can either deny Pastor Jones the opportunity to further exploit his media stunt for more self-promotion or fall for his cheap clownish gimmick and reward him for his action by giving him undeserved and unnecessary attention.
Muslims need not go any further to know that no force in the world, let alone a man who claims to have no more than three dozen people as his followers can obliterate the Quran.  Jones says that he is waiting a message from God as to whether he calls off his burning of the Quran or not, but Muslims know that the Almighty God has given them his word more than 15 centuries ago and had unequivocally promised them that He and no one else has sent down the Quran and that He alone shall preserve it:
“Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur’an and indeed, We will be its guardian. (Al-Hijr 15:9)
 It should be clear to anyone who believes and understands the power of this Ayah that no one can challenge the power of God and anyone who does that is just making an illusionary and futile attempt to deceive the world and to create a stunt to gain some transient and laughable worldly benefits for himself. With that in mind, it is expected of enlightened Muslims to take the moral high ground and act as the holy Quran enjoins them to behave in a situation like this:
“And not equal are the good deed and the bad. Repel [evil] by that [deed] which is better; and thereupon the one whom between you and him is enmity [will become] as though he was a devoted friend.” (Fussilat 41:34)
It is again the Quran that teaches Muslims not to reduce themselves to the level of the ignorant but rise above it and set a good example in civility and human decency when they receive ill treatment from an ignorant person:
“…And the servants of the Most Merciful are those who walk upon the earth easily, and when the ignorant address them [harshly], they say [words of] peace…” (Al Furqan 25:63)
It will indeed be unbecoming for any Muslim who knows the core message for which the prophet was sent to act any other way than to follow the Prophet’s footsteps and heed his words:
“The only reason I have been sent is to perfect good manners.”
So what manners one can imagine fits in this case than not to allow oneself to be dragged into the abyss by such a deviant person who has been disowned by his own church that he founded in Germany and condemned by and large by all religious denominations in America and the world and by the majority of the American political leaders regardless of their ideological orientations.  It is, therefore, silence in this case that is more profound and more resounding than raising any commotion that could be counterproductive. It is not a silence of weakness but it is a silence that sends the most powerful message as the 9^th century British Poet Martin Tupper said: “Well-timed silence hath more eloquence than speech”.
In a situation like this, one may also take solace of the inspiring story of Abdul Muttalib and the Abyssinian King Abraha. Just as Pastor Jones wants to burn the Quran, Abraha brought with him a massive army, many of them mounted on elephants, to destroy the Ka’aba of Mecca, the place of worship of the Arabs at the time and the most venerated place for all Muslims now. The story goes that when Abraha’s army reached the vicinity of Mecca some of his army looted 200 camels that belonged to Abdul Muttalib, the grandfather of the Prophet Mohammad, who was also the most respected elder in Mecca and the custodian of the Ka’aba.
 Abdul Muttalib came to the camp of Abraha and demanded the king to return his camels to him. Surprised to hear that all Abdul Muttalib wanted was a compensation for his camels and not to dissuade him to leave the Ka’aba, Abraha asked Abdul Muttalib why he didn’t talk about the Ka’aba instead of his camels. Abdul Muttalib’s answer was simple and clear:  ”I am the master of the camels,” he said, “whereas the Ka’abah house of worship has its lord to defend it”. And when Abraha indicated that no one could defend it from him, Abdul Muttalib told him that he was on his own. Finally, Abraha gave him the camels back, while the fate of his mission is well illustrated by Surat Al Fil (The Elephant).
Over 15,000 years ago and through his Bedouin wisdom, the Prophet’s grandfather realized that it was futile to hassle with a daring ignorant over something that was in the hands of a better defender than him and his clan.
Another striking lesson for Muslims in feeling pity for the actions of the ignorant is the story of how Prophet Mohammad reacted to the calamity he met in the hands of the people of the village of Taif when he went there to call them to Islam at the beginning of his mission. Instead of listening to him, the people of Taif ridiculed him and sent their children and the insane to chase him out of the village by throwing rocks at him. The story says that when Mohammad was out of the village he was soaked with blood from head to toe and his shoes were clogged to his feet. Seeing him in this pathetic state, the Archangel Gabriel brought him a message from God telling him that if Mohammad wished God would order the Angel in charge of the mountains to move the two mountains on either side of the village to collide and crush the people to death. Mohammad’s reply which should stand as a glaring example of tolerance and rising above ignorance was:
 “O Allah, guide these people, because they did not know what they were doing.”
One finds no better and no wiser example in dealing with a situation like that of Pastor Jones or any future misfit begging for media attention than that of the Prophet. Anything else will only be facing ignorance with ignorance and igniting a fire that will burn good people on both sides.
The best lesson that both Americans and Muslims can learn from this incident is that extremist people are a minority voice that don’t represent anyone one but their own deviant souls. Therefore, Americans should know that when a fiery Muslim cleric shouts death to America, he doesn’t talk on behalf of the millions of Muslims around the world who admire the good values of the American people and likewise Muslims should realize that when a person like Pastor Jones shouts burn the Quran, the majority of the Americans see him as a nut case who doesn’t represent the great American people.
Bashir Goth
Email: bsogoth@yahoo.com

Ciidwanagsan Ciida(Eid Mubarak)

Two roads, similar history – Awdal Road and Fairfax Country Road

Tuesday, 07 September 2010 17:38 Bashir Goth, Washington D.C,
It is more than 30 years since the people of Borama started their long journey for the building of the Borama-Dilla Road.  They started their bidding in the early 1980s when the construction of the tarmac road coming from Hargeisa was abandoned at Dilla. Ever since, the elders of Awdal have tirelessly raised the issue with every government delegation and every NGO that came to the region. Now after almost 30-odd years, the people have realized that an external assistance was not forthcoming and the only way they could build the road was to rely on their community’s resources and effort.
Having that in mind, it was inspiring for me to read a similar story in the pages of the Washington Post where the community of Fairfax County, Virginia in the United States, had to wait for 50 years for the construction of a road. I just happened to open the pages of the paper’s Sunday edition on Sept. 6, 2010 to read the following title:
After 50 years, Fairfax County Parkway finally heads toward the finish line
As I delved deeper into the story with great interest I was amazed by the resemblance of the history of the two roads despite the difference between the two communities in terms of wealth and civilization. The Fairfax Country Parkway was built in pieces just like the Borama-Dilla Road is being built now, mile by mile.
"The funding has been so uneven over the years, and as a result it got built in pieces," said Rep. Gerry E. Connolly, who served as a Fairfax County commissioner for 14 years before being elected to Congress in 2008.
Just as the Awdal community found the government to be an unreliable financial supporter and had to rely instead on local money, the Fairfax County community also found the state to be a non-reliable funding partner and had to resort to local community for support.
"The state wasn't a reliable funding partner, and an unusual percentage of the project got funded by local dollars,” Connolly said.
The comparison, however, has a more bitter taste for the Fairfax County community as their County happens to be the most prosperous county in one of the most prosperous states in America, while the Borama-Dilla Road is located in one of the poorest regions in Africa. Therefore, while the progress of the Fairfax Country Road was hampered by government bureaucracy, the delay of the Borama-Dilla Road was partly due to lack of resources and partly due to lack of proper appropriation of the government’s meager resources. 
"It has taken seven Virginia governors and the better part of four decades to complete a 35-mile roadway in the most prosperous county in one of the most prosperous states in the country," said Bob Chase, executive director of the Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance. "That's relevant in terms of how complicated and difficult it is to advance critically needed transportation projects in Northern Virginia."
As the Fairfax Road nears its end, the community there has already started dreaming of a brighter future where metro services should come to the area.
"Metro has got to be a part of our future," Connolly said. "It's got to come down I-66 to Gainesville, it's got to come down I-95 to Potomac Mills and we've got to have light rail down the Richmond highway corridor.
Maybe it is time for Awdal people as well to start planning for the post road period, a period where they have to dream of a new dawn of larger highways and even train or metro systems connecting the different parts of the region. But as Connolly urged the Fairfax County community for patience by saying: "These things are critical projects for the future…but these things take time. You can't just do them overnight." I may also caution the people of Awdal that with patience and perseverance that you will prevail. So fellow Awdalites, stay the course and know that you are not alone in your struggle for development as you share history with one of the richest counties and states in America.
Email: bsogoth@yahoo.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it