We acknowledge that in public service, it is not proper to breach confidentiality but where the national interest is concerned everything takes a second place. We cannot remain silent when the service we love & cherish which we render to the nation wilts & withers in our time.

26 years with the African Development Bank and with a PhD in economics obtained in 1982 from Missouri University, in January 2014, it seemed a good choice for the President and the PM at the time to appoint Dr. Abdirahman Duale Beileh as Foreign Minister. So what went wrong? Owing to lack of experience in Public Service and devoid of the values needed in Public Service, he would complicate matters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, diminish and shrink the Foreign Service and run the MFA to the ground. 

Cutting money from struggling embassies 

To the dismay of serving Somali Ambassadors, the Foreign Minister would insist to cut money from the meager budget of the struggling embassies. For instance $8,000 was cut from the 1st quarterly (January – March) of the Permanent Mission in New York. From the embassies in Baghdad and Islamabad $20,000 was cut separately from their 3^rd quarterly (July – September). One of the worst cases was enacted on the embassy in Tripoli whose ambassador was denied their entire 2014 budget, because the embassy was up until the start of the civil war in that country, one of ten African embassies, the Libyan government (dating back from Qadafi era) used to foot the rent of their chancery and residence with small maintenance fee. The way utilized to obtain the money from the ambassadors was tantamount to bullying. However, there was one exception who, stood up to the bullying. As soon the Foreign Minister started haggling over how much he wanted to cut from his 2^nd quarterly, the Ambassador looked him in the eye and told him sternly: "if you cut one cent from my quarterly, I will go back to my station and convene a press conference.” In the face of this threat, the Minister relented and stayed well clear of the path of this ambassador. The question is: What happened to the cuts amounting to over $400,000 which was accruing in a bank account only accessible by the Minister? This is not the reason we join Public Service. The reason we join Government Service is to make a difference.

Marauding gangs who indulge in illegalities

Foreign Service employees must have the values, culture and qualities needed to serve in public institutions such as patriotism, probity, selflessness; love of nation & service oriented. At MFA, to everyone’s disappointment the Foreign Minister brought one after the other 22 members of his relatives to the Ministry who acted like marauding gangs. They bullied their way and indulged in illegalities and on stripping everything. The biggest offender was the one who ended up, the manager of the Foreign Minister’s office. This person arrived at the MFA with the wrong mindset and values repugnant to the ones needed in Public Service. This particular individual labored under the warped idea that he must make as much money as possible within the "one year” his uncle was Foreign Minister. But unlike the private sector, the MFA is not the place to make money, since it has little else other than paper work. His idea of making money was to indulge in all sorts of illegalities. During his last days at the Ministry before he fled the country, it was reported that he bullied the visa officer of a friendly embassy whom he threatened he will be thrown out of Somalia if he did not provide 20 visas. 

Neediness uncharacteristic to high office holders 

A Foreign Minister should act like a prince not a pauper who asks and begs money from anyone. Post a long conflict, our country may be in bad shape, but Somalia is potentially a very rich nation. After all, it is situated in one of the most strategic locations in the world. It has the longest coast in Africa. Not to mention it has unimaginable riches beneath its soil and in its 200 nautical miles continental shelf. When we are in the Public Service of our nation, we must hold our heads high with dignity. Unfortunately, the following is an embarrassing incident. In a meeting when the ambassador of a friendly country mentioned that he was expecting a ship bringing food for displaced Somalis, the Foreign Minister jumped on the opportunity and requested to get some of the food. He retorted that it was for a school he built in Awdal. When the ship arrived the Foreign Minister got a one month food for 2000 displaced families.  No sooner was the food given than it was laden on a boat to Zeila and then to Borama where it was sold for US $500,000. This was beyond the pale. It was stealing donated food to our weakest and poorest citizens. One may wonder how it was known especially where the food was taken and sold and how much it fetched. This information can only come from the trusted relatives he brought to the MFA. One may also wonder why he needed to surround himself with these relatives and the answer is: He needed them because of his lack of confidence and insecurity. Nevertheless, it should be a lesson that no holder of public office should surround himself with relatives, but only by those whose presence in the work place is justified by merit.

Unexplainable behavior and actions

He loves to make patriotic lyrics for songs but his deeds were anything but patriotic. Deeds speak louder and last longer than any song. The Foreign Minister displayed hatred towards (1) Those from his predecessor’s community.  (2) Those from the PM and (3) Those from the President. He would argue that the capital should be moved from Mogadishu. He blames that the 20 year absence of government was caused by the people in Benadir, the region the capital is located. He advocated unless the capital was moved from Mogadishu, Somalia will neither get better nor move forward. He utters: "Ambassadors in 6 out of the 7 IGAD countries were from the President’s clan.” He thought his "positions sharing” formula would change all that.  

A Foreign Service should be inclusive not tribal

A Foreign Service should be inclusive and representative of a nation’s citizens from different regions and communities but it should not be tribalized. The Foreign Minister was planning to introduce a formula which he dubbed "Shax” (chessboard) which would tribalize the service. He would argue: "we must have equal share of positions by 4.5 formula.” His motive was solely to get more of his relatives into the service. One day however, he was challened on this matter by a diplomat who was waiting for posting after a recall. The Minister lectured the diplomat that he should wait his posting after the approval of his "equal sharing plan.” Then the diplomat responded: "If you are genuine of this sharing why everybody in your office is from your clan?” The Minister who was angered by the veracity of the argument told him to get out of his office. 

Mischief Making 

What Somalia desperate needs is reconciliation not more conflict. The Foreign Minister is known to have meet with the elders and politicians of a certain clan and told them that their MFA "quota” was taken by the clans of the PM and the President. The aim of this mischief making was to win over their sympathy and support at cabinet meetings and in Parliament. 

Total disregard for protocol matters

No government can take protocol matters lightly without paying a hefty cost to its prestige. When you disregard protocol you are not endearing yourself to anyone. The problem is you lose respect and you will not be taken seriously. You could be ridiculed and looked at in a funny way as people who are not fit to be in government. For that reason, at the forefront of what we do at the MFA is protocol since we are the custodians of the nation’s protocol. It can be said that the respect accorded to a government by other governments derives purely from its observance of protocol or the lack of it. Unfortunately, the Foreign Minister has shown antipathy and allergy towards protocol matters. He looked at protocol officers similar to the middle men in the business world whom he must cut off. He would bypass and disregard advice and suggestions coming from the protocol. In a bizarre way, the Foreign Minister also behaved as though the ambassadors of other countries were his counterparts and not their Foreign Ministers. He endlessly quarreled over protocol matters with the MFA’s then Chief of Protocol who was a veteran diplomat whom the Minister eventually sidelined and given another department. 

Haplessness and undiplomatic ways  

Other than his neediness during meetings with ambassadors and officials from other countries his ways were hapless, undiplomatic and sometimes offensive. The following is one of the most shocking. One evening after dinner he shocked the host ambassador who represented the country most committed to help the endeavor for Somalia’s wellbeing and development by saying "who thought 3 months ago, Beileh will come to this hell.” No wonder, not long after this dinner meeting, the ambassador sought transfer and went back to his country. Probably, he saw no point in remaining in a country where its Foreign Minister says was hell. Let alone someone bestowed on one of the highest positions of our nation; it should not elude any of our nationals that whether Somalia is hell or the Garden of Eden, it is our country. It is the only country to which we can proudly claim to be ours. We could not possibly tread Elgab (a rundown area in the center of our capital) with Manhattan which is one of the most expensive real estate on the planet. Because, Elgab is ours, Manhattan is not. One day, if we Somalis are united and work together, we can develop Elgab more beautiful than Manhattan. To do so we must first believe in ourselves and in our country and feel proud of the beautiful country, the Almighty has given us.   

Worthy Foreign Ministers build and thrive not diminish their Foreign Service 

In order to leave behind a lasting legacy, Foreign Ministers are known to embark on building, booming and modernizing the service they preside over. Not to mention nowadays a nation’s Foreign Service is used as the indispensable tool to promote investment, trade, industry, culture, generate, generate employment, and prosperity as well as to look after one’s overseas expatriates and Diaspora. Rather than rebuild the Ministry, the Foreign Minister ruffled and messed things up, degraded and impoverished the service and did the undesired.

 

Hasty closure of nine embassies without consultation 

According to the experiences cultivated in the diplomatic world, it is very easy to close an embassy but very hard to reopen it. Also in the diplomatic world, nobody closes an open window, let alone a door. One of the cardinal tasks of the MFA is opening doors and building bridges. In January 2014, at the time of his appointment, Somalia had 39 Embassies which many of them survived 20 years without government. Nevertheless, rather than find solution to the difficulties, safeguard the Service’s continuity, and ensure its wellbeing the Foreign Minister embarked on diminishing the Service. Without consultation with anyone, out of the blue, he ordered the closure of 9 Missions. The embassies he ordered their closure were the ones in Germany, Burundi, Rwanda, Libya, Syria, Malaysia, Indonesia, Tanzania, and Zambia. In Kuala Lumpur, the Somali Ambassador, who only recently presented his credentials, came to know the news of the closure of his embassy when he was called at the Malaysian MFA where he was given a copy of the Foreign Minister’s letter to his counterpart explaining that the closure of his embassy. Many at the MFA suspect that the Foreign Minister was acting under the instruction of a foreign country to shrink the Foreign Service of his nation.  Little did he care to know that some of the embassies he was closing such as the ones in Germany and Tanzania were open for 50 years through thick and thin, mainly thin because of a protracted conflict. Before embarking on embassy closures, he never bothered to ask why they were opened in the first place. 

The attempted closure of the embassy in Burundi was insensitive and unwise

Another of the Foreign Minister’s ill judgment was his attempt to close the Embassy in Burundi, a nation which not only we have one of the closest brotherly and historical ties but which its army is actively engaged in peace building in our country. The Burundi Government which gives a kinship treatment to our mission in Bujumbura because of the deep historical relationship between the two countries was dismayed by the attempted closure. It was however salvaged by a joint communiqué signed in October, 2014 during the visit of the former PM. Unbothered by the fact that the reason he was offered the post was to find solutions not create problems, the lame argument he put up for his closures was always: Where is money? His behavior was more of an accountant who only looked at the cost of things and not at the value. One of the diplomats who was frustrated by his lack of care for the service complained that "The Minister knew the price of all things and the value of nothing.” 

A poisonous environment was created

No one should make the people or the institution they were entrusted to lead, build and prosper worse off. It was not especially a pleasant experience to work with him. At first everybody at the MFA was hopeful that he will bring the leader who brings a positive energy that encourages team work, unity of purpose and harmony among the work force which unlocks their potential and blooms the service. What no-one thought was that he will personalize things and factionalize the people and diminish the opportunity he was given to build the institution at the MFA. Unfortunately, he would fight with everyone over everything. He had the mistaken view that foreign visits may involve money and he was the only person entitled to such visits. Like the relatives he brought with him, he had values contrary to the ones needed for public office. He did not understand that in Public Service everything we handle belongs to the nation and not the individual in the Service who only deserves decent salaries. For that matter, if ever funds were handled by overseas visiting official; it must be disclosed and taken immediately to the treasury. 

An unmistakable case of human trafficking

On 19 December 2014 ten persons who were not employed at the MFA were sent to Ankara ostensibly to train for the Data Center. The purpose of the Data Center which was funded by the brotherly Republic of Turkey for the MFA is to preserve the information and secrets of the Ministry and its embassies. The ten persons should have been genuine MFA employees whose character and honesty have been vetted, and not illegal immigrants. At the heart of this illegality are two men which the Minister is responsible for their action. They are the manager of the Minister’s office and the acting Permanent Secretary. On 19 December, 2014, the two even used the Foreign Minister to personally send off the ten at the airport in the glare of the national media. Little did the public who watched the drama on their sets know that the ten, the Minister was sending off were illegal immigrants. It was unfortunate that the Minister himself told to the media that the ten were MFA employees. However, it is not clear whether or not the Minister knew he was being implicated in human trafficking. On that day, his trusted relatives which he brought to the Ministry let him down and made him look bad, in the face of the nation. 

A tribute to Turkey for its ongoing support for Somalia 

We avail ourselves this opportunity to say few words about the Republic of Turkey’s ongoing brotherly support for Somalia. A Genuine feeling of concern of brotherhood cannot be faked or manufactured. Our nation is heavily indebted to the ongoing tangible and meaningful support of the brotherly Republic of Turkey which is the country most committed to helping Somalia’s development, progress and the wellbeing of its people.

Most damaging of all was destructive counsel from the relatives 

The Foreign Minister’s most crippling and debilitating problem at MFA was that he will heed and act on anything the relatives he brought with him would tell him no matter how adverse or damaging to him, to the Ministry or the country. When they told him, "We cannot get our agenda ahead as long as the Permanent Secretary remained in his post, he simply told the PS that they could no longer remain together at the Ministry and he should leave. The PS, a veteran diplomat whose experiences was benefiting the MFA quit with terrible consequences to the Ministry’s budding and blossoming functions and its ongoing progress. This could not happen in the past when the Somali state was intact. Permanent Secretaries were beyond the whims and fancies of Ministers. However, there is hope that the Government will soon close down this loophole for once and for all. What was the agenda of the Minister’s relatives which they couldn’t get ahead? It was simply to indulge in illegalities with the sole goal to enrich themselves. The Minister and his relatives acted as though they were entitled to everything and they could do anything at MFA because they felt it was their clan’s share in the Government. Since the departure of the PS, the Minister’s relatives who for sure got their way and enriched themselves beyond their wildest dreams are seen sporting with new expensive cars and other must have toys. The Ministry shall require rebuilding from the next Minister who is appointed in the coming reshuffle.

Postscript

The Offices of the Audit General and the Attorney General of the Government are both investigating the abuse of power and the wrongdoings committed by the Minister, and the individuals in his team who indulged in illegalities.   

Before the release of this information politician, ambassadors, MFA employees, MPs and senior officials have been widely consulted. 

In consultation and collaboration by 

Members of Somalia’s Foreign Service