President Siilaanyo travelled to theย Eastย with all the fanfare and jubilation of a super-rich Arabian King. He was accompanied by Key Ministers, Top advisers, Body guards with hundreds of land cruisers. ย The substantial expenditure spent on this unnecessary trip could have been allocated to the drought stricken citizens who are dying of hunger and thirst. The main purpose of the trip was dual – to polish the poor image of Colonel Biixiย and to enhance the aura of his cult.
Aย cult of personalityย arises when a leader uses mass media, propaganda, or other methods to create an idealized, heroic, and at times worshipful image. The leader usesย ย the mass media to cultivate a larger-than-life public image ย through unquestioningย flattery and praise. He is lauded for his extraordinary courage, heroism, knowledge, wisdom, or other superhuman qualities .ย Some of the well-known cults wereย Joseph Stalin,ย Sadaam Hussein,ย Mamar ย Qadaafi,ย Idi Amin, andMobuto Sese-Seko. In an interview with BBC on January, 2009, President Siilaanyo was asked why he is running ย ย ย for the Presidency. Mr Siilaanyo replied with a short sentenceโย Waari mayside ย waar hakaa hadhoย โ.
Now, president siilaanyo is cultivating to achieve that objective. This job was assigned to the Minister of Informationย Mr. Abdillahi Cukuse.ย The budget of his ย Ministry was increased fromย SHL 10 Billionย in 2014 toSHL 25 Billionย ย in 2015 ย ย i.e fromย $ 1.7 Millionย toย $ 4.2 Millionย a huge increase ofย 150%.ย These funds are mainly used to magnify the image of the President as a war hero, benevolent donor, and achiever.ย Mr Cukuseย who looks likeย Dr Gobblesย of Germany, is short, witty, pleasant, flamboyant and intelligent .He handles his job perfectly well.
On the other hand, Somalilanders areย dying of hunger and starvation. According to ย Fridayย sermons ofย Sheikh Adam Siiro,ย a young boy fromXawaadle Neighborhoodย in Hargeisa slaughtered aย dogย to satisfy his hunger instinct .Last week, 2 brothers fromย Hargeisa state Houseneighborhood ,ย Abdi Mohamed Yusufย andย Sayed Mohamed Yusufย , roasted aย catย to please their empty stomach. As the old saying goes โRome was burning, while King Nero was singing and playing Guitarโย ย .People are starving while our President is on spending spree and extravaganza. Leaders who create Cults often end with sad demises. Let us see and wait the fate of the President and the women around him.
Drs. Hoodo Yusuf, UK, London.