EX-Somali PM Gedi outlines his goals if elected President

By Juma Mwamzandi

Moi (l) and Gedi

Former Somali Prime Minister Mr.Ali Mohamed Gedi is the latest candidate to declare his candidature for the country`s  top seat outside the Somali soil.

Gedi who served in the Somali Transitional Federal Government as the Prime Minister between 2004-2007 said in Nairobi on the night of Tuesday 14 that his candidature is driven by the desire to see peace, stability, development and true democracy in the re-established country.

He spoke in the presence of Kenyan former President Daniel Arap Moi during the launch of an initiative dubbed ``It is time to save Somalia`` aimed at raising funds to help underprivileged people in the country that has not seen peace for more than two decades.

He named six points as benchmarks that must be achieved by his administration if he is elected as President in a contest, which has attracted more than 10 candidates among them the current, President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed and Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali.

The six points he named are:

1.Reconciliation, democracy and the development of governance structures at all levels.

2.Restoration of the rule of law by ensuring the establishment of a credible and independent judiciary.

3.Maintainance of law and order by establishing Somali owned law enforcement institutions.

4.Respect of all institutional statutes, institutions and agreements.

5.Enacting laws to safeguard individual freedoms of speech, association, religion and the press.

6.Empowering Somali women and other vulnerable persons including minorities and creating conducive environment for them to enjoy equal opportunities in employment and leadership.

He also said that he would propose laws to ensure women are empowered through greater asset ownership and participation in decision-making processes.

On the International front, the former Somali Prime Minister now a candidate for Presidency to be held later this month said that if elected he will seek re-admission of Somalia to all the relevant institutions and organizations among them the Great Lakes Forum and the East African Community in order for Somali people to reap maximum benefit from such integration.

Somali women sing

Moi who was the Chief guest at the function wished Gedi well in his Presidency bid and adviced the other contenders to accept the verdict of Somali people at the ballot box.

``The worst tragedies of Africa have always come from leaders who do not accept election results. Even if you are beaten with a small margin in an election it is not the end of the world. You can always wait gracefully for five years which is not much, and try your luck again``, said Moi.

Moi said that Somalia should be associated with development, investments, trade, education, science and technology because its people are some of the most enterprising in the world.