Food aid intended for vulnerable civilians embezzled by corrupt government officials

From: Somalicurrent

“There are Officials who have embezzled the food aid relief sent to the needy people in regions of Somalia.” Said Minister of Interior and Federal Affairs Abdilahi Godah this while he was briefing Somali Federal Government parliament on today.

Minister Godah stated that government halted the food relief aids to the regions and districts of Somalia, after they have confirmed that recipients of heads of district administrations have embezzled and didn’t provide the food aid to the needy people in the districts and regions of Somalia.

 “We have delivered food emergency aids, after we have recognized that people in Bakool and Bay crucially need for help, but much of the food emergency aids have been wasted on the recipient government officials, then we transferred food aids to settlements in Lower shabelle.” Said Godah.

Somali Parliament Pushes for Stricter Monitoring of Govt Spending

From: Agora-Parl

After a closed session on Sunday (April 20th) attended by the speaker of the Somali parliament, his two deputies, the 15 parliamentary committee chairs and ministry officials, lawmakers said they were still unsatisfied with Ministry of Finance's budgetary accounting. 

The details about last year's expenditures remain "unclear" and other requested changes to this year's budget were not included, Defence Committee Chairman Hussein Arab Isse told Sabahi after the meeting. Lawmakers gave the ministry another week to provide the necessary information, he said. This is the latest step by Somali lawmakers to hold the Ministry of Finance accountable for preparing and providing comprehensive and transparent financial reports related to budgetary spending. 

When Minister of Finance Hussein Abdi Halane presented the country's 2014-2015 budget to parliament on March 31st, totalling $218 million, parliament pressed the Ministry of Finance to submit financial reports from the previous year's budget and to clarify the salaries of government soldiers and generals before tackling the budget for the next fiscal year, lawmaker Mohamed Omar Dalha told Sabahi. "The debate stemmed from the way the Ministry of Finance prepared [the budget], which is missing many things," he said. 

The ministry has requested an inordinate sum of money for expenses it accrued for rental allowances and other unspecified expenses, he said. Another issue he mentioned was the lack of prioritisation for funding social services that would benefit regular citizens. Dalha said lawmakers were committed to combating corruption and irregularities in the budget, and would review it to ensure resources are divided more equitably among various ministries.

"Parliament has to pass something that is clear, understandable and includes an audit," he said. "The most important thing that the parliament wants is to keep track of the budget." "They have brought us the budget for 2014, but they have not provided any financial reports for 2013.

Last year's money has to be accounted for in order to account for this year's," Dalha said. "If last year's money is not accounted for, there will be no way of knowing how this year's funds will be spent." Fellow lawmaker Faisal Omar Guled welcomed parliament's check on the Ministry of Finance, but said passing the budget should be expedited so that the government can focus on the tasks ahead. "The country is frozen as a result of this budget," he said. "The ministries cannot pay for necessary expenses. 

Travel [plans] for senior officials who had to participate to international conferences that are indispensable [for Somalia] were put on hold." Step in the right direction: Parliament's new focus on tightening up and providing oversight for public expenditures is a step in the right direction that can decrease government waste, said Abdullahi Hassan Shirwa of Somali Peace Line, a Mogadishu-based non-governmental organisation. "If parliament is improving oversight on the administration, I see it as a win for the country and its people that can bring about progress," Shirwa told Sabahi. 

"The Ministry of Finance must provide its financials for last year as it is required by law and everything [parliament does] should be based on the law." Shamso Mohamed, 26, who studied management and business at Kampala International University, said the parliament was taking unprecedented steps to hold the Ministry of Finance accountable. "I have been closely following media reports about the debates in parliament between Somali lawmakers, and I can say they are on the path to combat corruption since the Ministry of Finance [has been asked to] revise the budget it submitted and it was not passed quickly like we have seen many times in the past," she told Sabahi. 

"The other victory we have is that from the opening of this parliamentary session, [the parliament ruled that] no additional funds can be withdrawn from the Central Bank without the knowledge of the financial committee," she said. Asha Abdullahi Isse, who served as deputy minister for women's affairs under the Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed administration, credited parliament's new approach to its leadership. "The speaker and his two deputies know the law," she told Sabahi. 

"In previous [administrations] it was a common occurrence for the speaker and the president or the prime minister to be friends. However, now there are people who understand the law and know how to separate the work from the friendship." 

Isse also said the current parliament was able to work more independently because they receive their salaries on a regular basis, unlike under the transitional federal government when salaries were inconsistent at best. "It is easy to understand why it was difficult for a parliamentarian who was not getting paid to perform his job," she said.

Somalia: The Rubbish Tip

From: FF

20 years ago the Italian television reporter Ilaria Alpi and her cameraman were murdered in Somalia because they discovered a scandal about illegal hazardous waste transports to the country. 10 years ago a tsunami flooded the coasts and threw barrels of hazardous liquids all across the country confirming Alpis suspicion. We use these sad anniversaries as an opportunity to write an article about this scandal discovered by the reporter ages ago and under which the Somali people suffer until today.  

Somalia has been at a bloody civil war for over 20 years now – dog-eat-dog. Since the dictator Siad Barre had been overthrown in 1991, there has been no functioning government, no sense of unity and particularly no peace. In northern Somalia the regions Somaliland and Puntland fight for their independence and in the other areas the government tries to defend its power against the radical islamistic al Schabaab. Somalia is shattered; the violent struggles for power of different clans split the society.¹ 

The hopeless situation of the Somalis is exploited shamelessly. European und Asian companies dispose hazardous waste, even radioactive and heavy metals, at Somalia’s coasts. According to Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, UN-envoy on Somalia, “reliable information” confirming the suspicion exists.² The motivation is profit. A UN-speaker says there are great differences in expenses: For disposing its waste legally a company would have to pay 1000 US-$ per ton. 

When disposing illegally, it’s only about 2.50 US-$ per ton.³An employee of UNEP confirms: “Somalia has been used as a dumping ground for hazardous waste starting in the early 1990s, and continuing through the civil war there.”⁴ The consequences could be seen after the tsunami in 2004, when rusting tanks and barrels were smashed on to the beaches. According to the UN they contained toxic liquids, heavy metals and radioactive substances. More than 300 people died directly of the consequences. Since then many babies were born malformed, sometimes with less limbs.³ 

The cancer rate has grown conspicuously: A doctor reports, he treated more people with cancer in one year than he has done all the years before the tsunami in 2004.⁵ Moreover many people suffer from sudden rashes, loose their skin, bleed from their mouth or get strange blisters.⁶ The illegal transports of waste endanger the lives of Somali people and health but also destroy the coasts and the living space of human beings and animals. Some inhabitants at Mogadishu’s coasts tell there are hundreds of dead fish every day washed ashore.⁷ 

 Especially the fishermen are forced into alternative solutions, which is why many become pirates. They see themselves as the missing coastguard and acting alone to protect their livelihood. “What is ultimately needed is a functioning, effective government that will get its act together and take control of its affairs”, says Ould-Abdallah.² Due to the instable situation in Somalia, it is the perfect destination for illegal waste trade: no extensive investigations, no effective government. Illegal actions of the shipping companies have no legal consequences.⁸ 

There is no proof for the waste trade to Somalia because the containers and barrels are not labelled.⁹ Private enquiries can result in death, like in the case of Ilaria Alpi. The Italian journalist was one of the first who discovered the waste scandal. She suspected the toxic waste to be traded for weapons illegally from Italy to Somalia. She and her cameraman even got film recordings of men obviously transferring toxic waste. But before Alpi could publish this information she and her cameraman got murdered.¹⁰ This is probably one of the reasons why investigating NGOs refuse to name responsible parties. 

Ould-Abdallah is careful as well and doesn’t give away any name of investigating persons or companies involved.⁵ Nevertheless two journalists, Sandro Mattioli and Andrea Palladino, made enquiries and discovered a connection to the Italian Mafia,¹¹  who buys the radioactive and toxic waste, camouflages it and disposes the waste in southern Italia or in weak countries like Somalia. To do so, the Italian Mafia cooperates with warlords; they trade weapons for the approval of the waste disposal.¹² Moreover, Mattioli and Palladino stated that security services are involved. Swiss intermediaries are also interposed, so that there is no direct connection between the waste producer and the waste disposer.¹¹ 

A witness confirms the suspicion: Fonti was part of an Italian mafia-organisation before deciding to cooperate with the legal authorities and testifying. His confession could not be verified, but his testimony is an important source to disclose the structure of the transports. According to Fonti the trade with waste started in the early 80’s, when Italian politicians hired the mafia to dispose of hazardous waste. Security services ensured that transport and disposal took place without the arising of conflicts. Even the state Energy Authority ENEA hired the mafia to dispose of 600 tonnes of toxic waste from different countries including Germany and the United States.¹³ 

The responsible parties have never been punished. Another network organising illegal waste transports to Somalia was the Scalione Network, discovered during the investigation concerning the murder of Alpi and her cameraman. Parts of the network are corrupt politicians: the former honorary consul of Somalia and the former Somalia president Ali Mahdi.¹⁴ Although the waste transport is not directly transacted, some sources report there is evidence about connections to European hospitals and factories.⁵ Mattioli says there are lists accusing also German companies like BASF, Bayer AG, Hoechst or Dynamit Nobel AG having disposed waste there in the eighties.¹¹ 

The UN-envoy to Somalia Ould-Abdallah says: “I must stress however, that no government has endorsed this act, and that private companies and individuals acting alone are responsible.” To him it is obvious that the civil war is fueled by the comportment of the companies.² Nevertheless European governments do not react to the suspicion of illegal waste disposing. Meanwhile the Somali inhabitants suffer from the avarice for profit. Somalia is the rubbish tip of the western throwaway society.

Government Arms Openly Sold in Mogadishu

From: "Marqaati"

In recent months, the security situation in Mogadishu and southern Somalia has worsened for a multitude of reasons. One factor contributing to this security breakdown is the free flow of arms in the areas of Somalia which is controlled by the federal government in Mogadishu. To investigate this matter further, marqaati carried out a 3-week observation of Mogadishu’s most open arms market.

 

This arms market is located along the street behind Safari Hotel, near KM5 in Mogadishu. There are other places in Mogadishu where one can buy a weapon from; marqaati chose to observe this market because it was the most accessible one. Below is a map of where the arms market is located.

 

 

                                                  This roadblock conveniently blocks most traffic from using the arms street

                                                   Arms dealers openly exchanging a TT pistol

                                          Arms dealers trading an AK-47 inside a shop
 

                                  Army officer discussing ammunition sells with known arm trader
 
                                   

                                     A soldier with two AK-47s. This is not around the Safari Hotel arms market.

                                     The arms traders sit on the side of the road waiting for customers

Marqaati volunteers watched the open gun market from 5 to 27 February 2014, alternating between volunteers and times of visits. Below is what we found:

• Men in uniform sell arms to arms dealers; arms dealers in turn sell to each other and to civilians. The exchange of arms mostly takes place on the street, but sometimes in shops selling other goods.

• Guns and ammo change hands without little attempt to hide the trade, which indicates breakdown of law and order in the heart of the capital and confidence on the part of traders that the government will not prosecute them.

• Arms dealers and soldiers selling arms sometimes continue their trade inside shops on the arms market street, which may be where the actual payments take place.

• Arms dealers have been seen keeping their weapons with security guards guarding businesses in the area.

• The most common weapon openly sold is the AK-47 and its ammunition, and the TT pistol and its ammunition.

Recommendations

To fight this problem, marqaati recommends the following:

1. The Somali government should investigate the existing black arms market in KM5.
2. Somali government should keep track of its arms stockpile, and do regular inspection to make sure that none of the arms are being diverted.
3. The promise to confiscate weapons in the hands of civilians or people in civilian clothing should made into a law and be enforced.

By:  Maxamed Mubarak