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Whilst Somaliland Protectorate supplied Aden with mutton on the hoof the latter supplied the small administrative machinery of the Protectorate with badly needed men who were sufficiently educated and skilled in higher clerical duties. In later years Aden even supplied the political leaders who led the Protectorate to independence and union with the rest of the country that was anointed as the ‘Somali Republic’. Ahmed was born and bred in Aden, and so it was in Aden that he received his education, which enabled him to join the civil service in British Somaliland in 1947 – a service he never left until the demise of the succeeding State in 1991. Early in the service, however, while the British were still there he was awarded a training course to the Sudan in order to broaden his horizons and give him the human skills necessary for higher administrative responsibilities and leadership. From then on the trajectory of his career took a steep upward mobility. The bedrock of administration has always been a field service managed in the Protectorate by a network of district commissioners and their assistants. Ahmed served in these capacities with distinction while the British were still there and independence was not yet on the horizon. Upon independence he was appointed as Deputy Governor under Osman Ahmed Hassan who became the Governor of Somaliland. But Osman was whisked off to Mogadishu shortly after owing to the immediate need for diplomatic representation abroad and was appointed ambassador to France whereupon Ahmed became the Governor of the entire North (ex-Somaliland) which was still intact until two years later when it was bifurcated into the Eastern and Western regions with Burao and Hergeisa being their respective headquarters. Ahmed was then moved to Burao to establish the new regional administration there. Whilst in that post he was sent on a refresher course to Manchester University from which he returned to Burao to resume his duties as regional governor. After the tumult of celebrations and the early vicissitudes of politics had settled it dawned upon the national government to integrate the civil services of the North (ex-British) and the South (ex-Italian) so as to have a single unified service. New standards of performance that required highly trained and experienced administrators were introduced. Ahmed was then appointed in 1964 as Director-General of the Ministry of Public Works where he played a leading role in the restructuring, staffing and reorientation of the ministry. He remained there until the presidential election of 1967 brought about a change of government. The new government restored diplomatic relations with the UK, (relations that had been severed by the then Somali government in 1963 over the NFD) and Ahmed was appointed Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s. But, shortly after the military take-over he was called back in 1970 to serve as the Director-General of the vital Ministry of Interior, which happened to be my parent ministry. I had been a district commissioner for some years and was hoping in that year of uncertainty for reposting within the ministry or assignment elsewhere. That was when I came to know him better. After a short conversation he posted me to Burao as deputy governor where I was pleasantly surprised to meet his father – Jama Jengheli, an old man who was then quite young for his age. Ahmed had been my superior before in Hargeisa as our Governor. The year was 1960, and I was only a young boy fresh from secondary school in Aden and working in his outfit as a junior employee of no consequence. Apparently, he took no notice of me then, as he just recently told me that he had no recollection of my being there. But, as Director-General he had to follow my work as deputy governor, and I was pleased that I did not incur his displeasure, for he was demanding and would not tolerate any lapses. More than two years later he transferred me to Kismayo in the same capacity and he made a good and unusual gesture to me by posting an English typist to type my reports. In normal circumstances, I should have been due for governorship but this was then the exclusive preserve of uniformed officers, which is the reason why I had to be transferred on my request to the Somali Institute of Public Administration (SIPA). However, that did not stop Ahmed and me from working closely together on the training of local government officers, the drafting of a new law on local government together with an accompanying conduct of business, and holding training meetings and conferences even for military administrators. It was always a pleasure to work with him despite his deceptive appearance of being austere and negative. He was truly a man who would promise little and deliver much. Many a time he turned down requests for favors outright only to surprise the person or persons asking for them by delivering. So it was often said that the ‘No’ of Jengheli was much better than the ‘Yes’ of many others. There were times of course when requests were for favors that were either absurd or against the rules of fairness or even the law. In those cases he would be visibly angered by the impertinence. Ahmed Jengheli’s long service and experience straddled administration, diplomacy and politics, and he distinguished himself in all of them. In addition to being at the top level of the bureaucracy for many years he served as ambassador to the UK and, later, to Germany. He also held several ministerial portfolios, among which was the coveted ministry of foreign affairs. During all those years of service no one of any substance had ever made a negative remark on his performance, his political neutrality, his sense of fairness, or his moral rectitude. It is blasphemous to say that he never made a mistake or wronged a person (there must be somebody somewhere who thought at one time or another and still thinks, perhaps, that he was unjust to him or her) but I am sure those mistakes or wrongs were not of the heart. He was a nice man, a kind man, a straightforward man (not a hypocrite in this age in which hypocrisy has become an art) and morally upright. In that sense he was truly a ‘Jengheli’ because he was not corrupted by the nefarious attractions of civilization. Although he spent half his life (44 years) in the public service his sense of probity remained so glaringly exemplary throughout that even if he purloined millions of dollars from the public purse (which he did not) no one would have ever believed that he did so. May the Lord rest his soul in peace and reward him with the highest abode in Heaven. Amen! ____ Mr. Ismail Ali Ismail is the author of the new book “Governance: the Scourge and Hope for Somalia" which is available at Amazon and Zailai books. He can be reached at: geeldoonia@gmail.com _____________________________________________________________________ We welcome the submission of all articles for possible publication on WardheerNews.com
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