The media is important if democracy is important but that is not the case under Silanyo’s coterie regime which crossed the all red lines and casted doubt the secession. The dwindling freedom of press under President Silanyo’s regime severely suffered after one journalist and an editor thrown into Africa’s Guantanamo Bay in Hargaysa where pirates and terrorists are piled up to the ceiling. Yusuf Gaboobe has run series of articles exposing massive embezzlement of Somaliland’s Mining Minister who, according to the dispatch of the Haatuf, diverted millions of USD in cash signatures of the oil exploring firms to his personal account to pay overdue mortgage mansions in California.
Without fair trial, the Chief Editor of Somaliland Times and Haatuf papers as well as media mogul Mr. Yusuf Gaboobe and his journalists are languishing in overcrowded cell filled with convicted terrorists whom his investigative press successfully led the government to catch them red handed before they blown up cafes or ministries. Being placed next to such high degree criminals proves how Somaliland’s government hostile towards the freedom of press and decisive to eliminate media sooner.
To deprive him of the public sympathy and do some sort of character assassination, the government accused the newspaper of getting funds from foreign power to further their agenda without any shred of evidence to suggest so. Opposition forces and newspapers like Hubaal were silenced since president Silanyo assumed power four years ago. Open campaign against freedom and democracy started to subjaguate the free people to the Gar-adagism dogmas which enabled Mr. Silanyo to grab the power.
A poet who composed compliment poem in support of Westgate mass murder in Kenya met lenient sentence terms and finally released when Islamists political clout unleashed. Will Yusuf Gaboobe be dealt with the same way? There is no backing for Gaboobe apart from ordinaries like me or his colleagues. Will the world ever turn back to Silanyo?
Mr. Yusuf, Yemen-born media entrepreneur founded reputable publications of three languages: Arabic, English, and Somali to promote Somaliland both local and international arena. He put memorable question to Tony Blair when he was campaigning the cancellation of Africa’s accumulated debts. Gabobe’s press firm is the only credible source of public information for both local and foreigners concerned with what is going on inside. He has access to the government unlike any other newspapers which only publish things already in the public domain.
The government threatened to ban several times for running “defamatory” articles to their perception. Mr. Yusuf Gaboobe, a war veteran sung once “What would you do? If asked to make ultimate sacrifice?” Run news articles despite the gut the inherent risks to his life and to his staff reporters. His news publications upset many Somaliland government ministers since President Silanyo came to office. Mr. Silanyo used to champion the rights of press freedom during his opposition showed his true color of being a tyrant of its worst form“ … this last point is important because there are some who advocate for democracy only when they are out of power ,once in power they are ruthless and suppress the rights of others…” President Obama said this in forewarning to potential abusers not to use democracy to reach power only.
Somaliland unrecognized by any other country on earth, media played vital role to reaching out masses of the world and contributed to the nation building and democratization of the system. But the government recently begun to receive funds from Arabia whose the word democracy is alien and threatening, therefore; the Western aid won’t be deterrent unless taken further steps to pressurize to reopen the papers.
The incarceration of Yusuf Gaboobe and his staff journalist as a result of shedding light on the wide scale corruption and exposing to the public.
Somaliland Activist and Senior Editor At Democracy Chronicles African Edition. dirye@democracychronicles.com
