The upcoming Mudugh Community Conference should not, must not, be another ceremonial gathering of speeches, selfies, and fruitless resolutions that die in their own echo chambers. This is not the time for hollow patriotism, nor for repeating tired mantras of “unity” while continuing the same self-defeating behaviors that have left Mudugh Region a cautionary tale in recent Puntland politics. This conference must dig deep, face the hard truths, and most importantly—it must chart a course forward rooted in accountability, collective will, and radical honesty.
Stop Pretending the Problem Is Only Governmental
Let’s be absolutely clear: you can’t solve the problems of Mudugh by pointing fingers at Garowe or waiting for handouts. Governance failure is real—but so is community failure. Roads don’t build themselves, but neither do they get built by communities who are fragmented, distrustful, and sabotaging each other behind tribal curtains.
Is the backwardness societal or governmental? The answer is both. And until we accept this, nothing changes. Mudugh’s stagnation is not a coincidence; it is a direct result of:
Lack of a common purpose
Chronic disunity among residents
Toxic local rivalries
A short-sighted elite class more interested in positioning than progress
The Two Sides of the Same Coin: Society & State
You can’t expect the Puntland Government to invest in infrastructure, security, and services in a region whose people are perpetually divided. Imagine trying to install electricity in a house where the family keeps tearing out the wires to blame each other. That’s Mudugh today.
Likewise, blaming the government alone ignores the community’s own paralysis, internal bickering, and refusal to self-organize around a unified agenda. The only way the government can be effective is if the society acts like it deserves governance.
Three Pillars That Must Be Addressed at the Conference
1. Stalled Infrastructure Projects
The road network between Galkayo and other districts has become a symbol of betrayal, mismanagement, and apathy. This conference must demand timelines and accountability, not just pledges and wishful thinking.
Galkayo, once a hopeful urban center, is now choking under urban decay. There is no cohesive plan for drainage, urban roads, or even traffic regulation. If a city reflects its people, then Galkayo is the mirror that doesn’t lie.
2. Environmental Degradation
Galkayo’s environment is in total collapse. The conference must not ignore the horrendous stinging water ponds after each rainfall, severe deforestation, garbage-laden neighborhoods, and disappearing greenery. Local leadership has utterly failed in this area, and silence on it equals complicity.
3. Security & Public Order
Peace is the foundation of everything. The fact that Galkayo remains vulnerable to violence, gang activity, and militia-based influence shows that the rule of law remains fragile. The conference must make security and local policing a community-wide responsibility, not just the business of overstretched Puntland police.
The Elephant in the Room: Disunity
Let’s be brutally honest: Mudugh suffers not from a lack of resources or potential, but from a disease of disunity. Every sub-clan pulling in its own direction. Every “leader” playing chess with community interests. Every elder more concerned about his own standing than the collective good.
This conference must be a reckoning. A funeral for the old mentality that made unity conditional on who gets the mic, who gets the contract, who gets the praise.
Without unity, there will be no progress. Without progress, there will be no future.
The Role of Puntland Government: Not a Savior, But a Partner
Puntland cannot—and will not—solve Mudugh’s problems while the community stays dysfunctional. It is time to stop waiting for miracles from Garowe, and instead force a new relationship where Mudugh speaks with one voice, negotiates with clarity, and holds both itself and its government accountable.
The government’s role must be redefined:
Not as a parent to spoiled children, but as a partner to a mature community ready to move forward.
Demanding concrete plans for roads, airport, schools, and hospitals—yes.
But also ensuring that the local leadership doesn’t waste, steal, or politicize every opportunity.
What Must Be Done: A Call to Action
This conference must end with actions, not just resolutions. Here’s what must be demanded and immediately implemented:
1. A Unified Community Committee
With representatives from every sub-clan and urban neighborhood, tasked with tracking development promises and pressing Garowe with one voice.
2. A Public Infrastructure Watchdog
An independent, locally formed body to monitor project implementation and call out delay tactics, corruption, or sabotage.
3. Environmental Cleanup Campaign
Launch city-wide campaigns to clean, plant, and regulate the urban and rural environment. Partner with Puntland Ministry of Environment—but initiate it from the bottom up.
4. Youth & Security Forum
Involve youth in securing the city. Not just as police assistants but as proactive members of a civic guard or neighborhood councils to reduce radicalization and violence.
Final Words: This Is Mudugh’s Last Chance
If this conference becomes yet another staged event, then Mudugh deserves the neglect it suffers.
But if this becomes a moment of self-reflection, unity, and decisive action, then it could be the beginning of a real transformation. No outsider will rescue Mudugh. Puntland can only help those who help themselves. It’s time for this community to grow up, stand up, and rise up.
The world owes us nothing. Puntland owes us nothing.
We owe ourselves everything.
#Mudugh2025
#GalkayoUnited
#FixOurselvesFirst
#PuntlandAccountability
Let the conference be the rebirth. Or let it be a final tombstone.
The choice is ours
Further reading:
GALKAYO: THE DYSTOPIAN CITY OF SOMALIA
Warsame Policy & Media Network (WAPMEN) 