We don’t know where everybody of you is on earth, and that is relevant point if you want to gauge the real perspectives of persons in the debate. From our perspectives as persons on the ground in Somalia, federal system is already a reality in the country. Yes, public institutions in both the Centre and most FMS are either non-existent or still rumentary. In the past only Puntland State was advocating for it, but now most FMS wouldn’t accept the return to One City-state Rule from the Centre. True, most FMS depend on the hand-outs from the Centre via international donor community. That is why the Centre has much sway in their respective internal affairs and security as they experience Alshabab onslaught, humanitarian crisis, non-existent infrastructure and a lot more problems. This is where Puntland is far better off and can stand up to unduly influence from the Centre. But, they all feel sense of pride for having made it. Another benefit they got from setting up a regional state is their newly acquired abilities to mitigate clan warfare as all clans feel belonging to a common state. Federalism in Somalia is now stronger than it was when Puntland alone was fighting for it. Puntland leadership may have political differences with the Central and some FMS leaders, but that doesn’t mean that they have abandoned the concept in practice. It is important to understand the situation on the ground.

Also note that the federal system with its different forms is a complex democratic governance with overlaying public institutions. Because most Somali clans are confederal by nature rather than blood lineages (Hawiye, Isaaq, Dir, Raxanweyn etc), federalism would have come easy and suitable to them. But the problem was its implementation because most leaders so elected before were undermining the system. They couldn’t grow out of the old central mentality they had experienced before. The question is, who would then make federalism work in Somalia? It is extremely important to be aware of this fact.

Advocates of a strong Somali Government argue that federalism weakens the Somali central administration, and the system Somalis agreed upon, following a vicious civil conflict in the country, is not working for Somalia and bound to fail. The proponents of this argument just shy away from declaring their intentions of directly promoting a unitary government, repeating the notion of installing the same mal-administration and tyranny that led to state failure as a result of city-state repression and violation of basic human rights. Many don’t acknowledge the fact that Somalia is still a federal state by name only, and even that is de facto rather than de jure as citizens fled to seek safe havens in their original places of ancestry, following the Civil War. They also seem not to be aware of the fact that leaders of the Central Government, who were elected on the platform of the Federal Constitution, paradoxically were undermining the very system they are elected to protect and uphold. Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud 1 & 2, and Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo were undeniably committed to doing away with Somalia’s fragile federalism. However, by attempting to unravel the system, they did more harm to the people’s trust in public institutions. Any argument for and against decentralization of Somalia’s governance which do not take into account the fact that federalism doesn’t take care by itself without concerted national efforts and intellectual power behind it, doesn’t deserve recognition in this debate.

Many Southern Somalia think tanks, media houses and prominent personalities are leading relentless campaigns to promote a centralist approach to Somali governance. At the forefront of these efforts are Mogadishu-based Heritage Institute for Policy Studies and Hiiraan Online, just to mention a few. Another major impediment to federalism is a secessionist attempt in Northwest Regions of Somalia, with many now promoting the idea that the Provisional Federal Constitution can’t be completed without Somaliland joining in. Others use these fresh political trends as excuses to prolong the status quo and freeze the democratic aspirations of the Somali people. Secessionists in Northern Somalia are now resorting to military violence against resisting residents in Sool Region as they see diminishing returns for their unilateral attempt to break up Somalia.

https://ismailwarsame.blog/2021/10/22/diaspora-writers-and-intellectuals-have-lost-reality-touch-in-somalia/