The Kampala Accord signed by the Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, the president of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and the Speaker of the Transitional Parliament respectively, defers "elections of the President and the Speaker and his deputies for twelve months after August, 2011 in order to adequately prepare and complete priority transitional tasks". The two signatories of Kampala Accord expect that the Somali "Prime Minister will resign from his position; and the President will appoint a new Prime Minister." People in TFG-controlled parts of Mogadihsu took to the street to protest the Accord that empowered president Sharif to sack the prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed.

President Yuweri Musevini of Uganda and Dr Augustine P Mahiga, Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations, who both acted as witnesses to the signing of the Accord, have, lacked like the two signatories, a clear understanding of the popularity of the prime minister. The Somali president and the parliamentary speaker have made the assumption that the prime minister would be compelled to honour the Accord, and that president Sharif would be supported by people of Mogadishu. Both assumptions have turned out to be wrong. The Accord makes mention of stakeholders, but the two signatories-- the president and the parliamentary speaker--were members of the Alliance for Reliberation of Somalia (ARS) based in Asmara, Eritrea. This is major flaw on the part of the international community, a flaw that led the president and the speaker to take the international community for granted.

To say only the Kampala Accord has sent people of Mogadishu to the streets is an understatement. In 1991 people of Mogadishu expected leaders of a popular uprising would play a significant role in preparing Somalia for parliamentary democracy after 21 years of military dictatorship, but the uprising had been hijacked by power-hungry leaders who had metamorphosed into warlords. In 2006 the warlords' reign of terror was brought to en end by the former Union of Islamic Courts who benefited from support of the people who suffered under warlords. President Sharif was the leader of the Union of Islamic Courts ; Al Shabab, the anti-TFG group , was affiliated to the Union of Islamic Courts.

President Sharif was appointed the leader of the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia in Asmara in 2007. He joined UN-sponsored reconciliation conference in 2008. The conference paved the way for the expansion of the transitional parliament to include members from the Alliance for the Reliberation of Somalia, and his subsequent election as president of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia.

Demonstrations in Mogadishu are unprecedented in Somalia's political history. Demonstrators have shown that people of Mogadishu are no longer hostage to opportunist politicians. Both president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and speaker Sharif Hassan have lost credibility due to lack of political competence. Through protests challenging the Kampala Accord, demonstrators have set an example for Somalis in other parts of the country. Not every thing in Somalia can be understood through the clan prism. Mogadishu people have written up a new narrative by supporting a prime minister they see as an honest public servant. People of Mogadishu are in need of able, dignified leaders who preserve their political maturity evidenced by their popular self-expression. The international community should revise the Kampala Accord and publish a code of conduct for working with Somalia's stakeholders.

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Liban Ahmad is the editor of Somalia Research Report and a contributor to WardheerNews. He can be contacted at: libahm@gmail.com

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