“Of all the races of Africa, there cannot be one better to live among than the most difficult, the proudest, the bravest, the vainest, the most merciless, the friendliest: the Somalis. Every individual Somali fights to stay himself, a person… The Somali fumed under discipline and loved the irregular life, the scattered patrol and the lone effort which might bring him to individual notice, to recognition for what he might achieve on his own”.
Gerald Hanley, Warriors, Life and death among the Somalis

With the crumble of time-honored traditional systems and state institutions, a new breed of leadership arises from the ashes. From Djibouti to Nairobi, the Somali-inhabited Horn of Africa has become the political grazing land of the blissful-looking His Highness the Chief of Chiefs. The Chief of Chiefs is becoming a household name which is simultaneously revered and dreaded. Politics and political gamesmanship are in his blood and the fates of many Somali political leaders are in the palm of his hand. Charismatic, controversial and loquacious, the Chief of Chiefs is a man to be reckoned with – a man of paramount exploits and of different stamp. Majored in the art of expedience, the Chief of Chiefs is extravagant and enjoys the trappings that come with celebrity-like popularity. With cohorts and fans across the Horn, the Chief of Chiefs is the foremost leader that Somalis would look up to when a matter of peace and death are being dealt with.  

A self-made chieftain, a cheerleader, a clairvoyant, an emerging star pundit, a statesman of stature, a potentate of note in his realm; the Chief of Chiefs is undisputedly the most influential personality in the tumultuous politics of the beleaguered Horn of Africa region. From Asmara to Kampala, he is too cozy with those in powers who are often smarting from sagging popularity and are paralyzed by incompetence, corruption and dictatorship and with influence-peddling business elites, who mercilessly fleece and molest the less fortunate and are eternally wedded to the power usurpers. Intellectuals with glittering academic credentials are queuing and jostling at his doorstep simply to win his blessings and patronage. He is befitting to his alter ego described as one who “likes to feel that men are bricks to his trowel, to build with them what he likes; and they find a secret zest in being led by him”. Immaculately dressed, engaging and friendly and loved by women; the Chief of Chiefs is a trendsetter of a sort.  Persuasive and articulate arguments are his inherent forte.
 
The Chief of Chiefs, an indefatigable genius, who has graduated from the school of a degenerating society, from the womb of an anguished nation, has effectively supplanted the natural traditional leaders, genuine politicians and intelligentsia. He is shrewd enough to grab every opportunity that comes his way. He may not necessarily tune to any melody, but orchestrates remarkable symphonies for others to dance to. He enjoys a flamboyant media presence and is outspoken on every issue. The Chief of Chiefs, an impresario of the highest order, can trigger enormous tremors in many shaky fiefdoms in the neighborhood and has the capacity to pull the rugs beneath sitting feeble presidents and prime ministers.

Born and bred in the sparsely populated, reddish, parched grazing lands of the Hawd – a much coveted dreamland for the mighty camels in the Somali peninsula, in a period of roiling instability, he commanded what seemed like a posse of bandits. In his formative years, he was a leader of a brutal clan brigand which took pride in raiding villages and settlements of nearby clans for the purpose of wresting the gorgeous beasts - the camel. His bravado and predatory habits enlisted both the fear and envy of his peers. He always carried a crucial item that no man who matters could do without – a rifle. Fickle and restless, unpredictability was deeply ingrained in his DNA.

As a conceited, young rogue cameleer with short-temper and swift hand for brawl, he was always quarrelsome and spoiling for a fight. He was inured to bloodshed from childhood, passionately vindictive and audacious in attack often on trifling issues. Boastful of his lineage and their prowess, he proved a highly dreaded bird of prey.

As a glutton of the delectable camel milk, the mainstay of the men of the Hawd, a herd of milk camels were always at hand to quench his insatiable cravings for the nutritious staple. Bending his left leg, he will stand on the right, squeezing the teats with his right hand and squirting a flow of milk from the udder to a vessel in his left hand and at times directly into his mouth, guzzling at the rate of about half a liter a minute. 

Young and culturally untrained, like many of his generation of cameleers, he migrated first to the city of Hargeisa and then to Mogadishu in his late twenties, with virtually no practical skills to prepare him for the shift to the urban life. Apart from crude masculinity and inherent audacity, he was ill-equipped to weather the dynamics of the rough and tumble of city life.

A sinner turned a saint; the city life has altered the Chief of Chiefs in a big way. Within short span of time, he transformed himself from a dreaded cameleer brigand to a respected city suave – an influential powerbroker, a kingmaker, an enterprising magnetic personality with unparalleled political clout and patronizing smile. With no compunction and little contemplation of his past, he continues to conquer and explore the world of immense opportunities with vengeance. He peppers a much-needed spice to the often convoluted and murky politics of the region. His expertise in conflict resolution is sought after by governments, warlords and rival clans. Astute in playing his cards and with unusual knack for realpolitik and machinations, he evinces an aura of confidence, wielding wide-ranging political and social leverages, and patronizes trendy restaurants and cozy middle class Qat salons such as the Maan-hadal.

The Chief of Chiefs bears a truly regional distinction. With multiple veiled identities, his diplomatic tentacles are wide-reaching. He travels with Ethiopian, Djiboutian, Kenyan and Somali passports, to name a few. He is accredited to have miraculously succeeded in resolving some of the recent political gridlocks in the Horn. Among other things, he has allegedly persuaded Meles to dump the ill-famed former Prime minister of Somalia, Ali Geddi, and Rayaale to set free the incarcerated leaders of the Qaran political party. He is now eyeing the crisis in Kenya where his dexterous hands may be solicited.

The Chief of Chiefs is an altogether changed man but the cause for the change of his persona can neither be analytically quantified nor elucidated rationally. His rise to the commanding heights of social and political glory remains one of the inexplicable phenomenons of this century. Experts are unable to decipher into the mysteries as to how he has been catapulted to such pinnacles, but the fact remains that he is calling the shots. Is this the kind of leadership that can steer Somalis out of the quagmire in which they are helplessly trapped in?

It is somewhat baffling, if not a mere display of poetic justice, that Somalis, from all walks of life, remain pawns of cunning self-made characters such His Highness the Chief of Chiefs.

By A. Du'ale Sii’arag

Member of MaanHadal Team
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