SUNDAY EDITORIAL | The Somali leader's dubious silence on the exploration matter is a testament either to his lack of control (over Muse) or his complicity in the illegal affair.

The men who resist the Ethiopian-imposed project in south Somalia are targeted with tanks, artillery shells and the full onslaught of the joint Somali-Ethiopian military. Granted, that many such men are responsible for a relentless wave of guerrilla attacks on government positions, especially in the national capital Mogadishu . But there are others in the resistance who do not wield weapons, but speak loudly of their condemnation of Ethiopian soldiers on Somali soil. The Ethiopian-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) has arrested several men for speaking out against the Ethiopian army, or shut down media houses for voicing the civilians' enduring misery.

The war in Mogadishu is primarily aimed at flushing out extremist groups and establishing the framework for a federal government system in Somalia , following 17 years of civil war. The TFG is mandated to institute regional governments that fall under its jurisdiction and pay taxes to Mogadishu . The State of Puntland , in Somalia 's northeast, has been a self-governing region since 1998. Locals clans allied to form a regional autonomy with the aspiration of being a "building block" for a future federal Somalia . Thus, the image of Puntland has been enshrined to represent the first prototype federal state in the country; a state that upholds federal laws, defends the nation's sovereignty and assists would-be regional governments establish the foundations of governance.

Muse and Yusuf

But the cast of characters in Garowe, the capital of Puntland, has no desire to help Somalia recover from years of war, poverty and suffering. The Puntland leadership – men like President Adde Muse, VP Hassan Dahir Afqura and Finance Minister Mohamed "Gaagaab" Ali – would rather collect a quick buck before they help feed a poor family of four, with no father to speak of. Today's drastic situation in the Puntland regions is a testament to the catastrophic leadership failure of Muse and his cronies. The economy is on the brink of collapse, with record-prices for food and other necessary goods, mainly due to the illegal practice of printing counterfeit Somali Shillings. The Puntland government's complicity in the counterfeit currency scandal is another worrying indication of these men's aberrant hunger for money. The security situation is at its worst level since the breakdown of central government in 1991; in Garowe, the heart of Puntland, women are afraid to walk at night for fear of robbers and rapists. In the fields of education and healthcare, the Muse administration has continued on its disappointing track of empty promises and hollow speeches.

Yet, this administration of remarkable incompetence continues to daydream of striking gold – or oil, to be more precise. Since mid-2005, the government of Puntland has pursued every avenue to legitimize an agreement permitting foreign companies to explore the region's rumored natural resources wealth, including unproven oil reserves. This agreement was first signed with Maldives-registered Consort Private, Ltd., but transferred to an Australian company, which in turn sold shares to a Canadian firm. All these "deals" are taking place in foreign capitals, as if the Berlin Conference is still in session and the rights of the Somali people are not recognized, or worse, represented by an ineffective ruler like Adde Muse.

The facts on the ground have not changed since 2005. Nor did they change since 1998, when the State of Puntland was established as a transitional authority by local clans until federal governance is restored. Contrary to what Puntland government officials often claim, natural resources found in Puntland, or in Mogadishu for that matter, do not "belong" to the government. The land that Somalis have been fighting each other for belongs to the various clans; this, essentially, is the deep roots of the Somali conflict.

This is the main reason the Puntland government and its Australian partners, Range Resources, Ltd., failed in their first endeavor to collect mineral samples in parts of Sanaag region. In March and April 2006, Sanaag clans fought bitterly against Puntland security forces that were dispatched to the remote mountains to protect a team of foreign scientists conducting geologic work for Range. The deadly skirmishes forced Puntland and Range officials to suspend operations, due to the high risk for more violence. The most astonishing thing about the whole episode is that there had never been any report of battles in the village of  Majiyahan , Sanaag, before the Puntland-Range push for exploration.

The local clan, the Warsangeli, felt alienated by the Muse administration and its unilateral drive to encroach on clan lands without permission and attempt to exploit its resources. When Puntland was formed following the Garowe Conference, the Warsangeli clan, like other Puntland clans, did not sign an agreement stating that the land (i.e. Sanaag) belongs to the government of Puntland. The founding points of the regional autonomy did not grant such grand authority to the government, or to its corruptible leaders. Many conflicts in Somalia are rooted at the question: Who owns the land? The southern port of Kismayo , the country's third-largest city, is a living example relating to the conflict of land ownership.

The Puntland leadership is undermining national order by continually disobeying the constitution of the Transitional Federal Government, to which Puntland is a signatory. Thousands of people are dying in Mogadishu because the TFG wants to impose a federal system, while the Puntland leadership is allowed to offer supportive lip service to the TFG but conduct business independently. As officials from foreign companies and the Ethiopian military meet exclusively with Puntland leaders, one wonders if the TFG controls anything.

It is commendable that TFG Energy Minister Mohamud Ali Salah publicly denounced Muse and his illegal activities, including making an oil law for Puntland. But Muse needs a more forceful exertion of pressure, namely from his former nemesis, President Abdullahi Yusuf. The Somali leader's dubious silence on the exploration matter is a testament either to his lack of control (over Muse) or his complicity in the illegal affair. When one compares the armed suppression of Mogadishu for failing to tow federalism, and the free hand granted to Puntland, one wonders if Yusuf is really genuine about the federalism project.

If Yusuf does not rein in Muse quickly, armed resistance might not be limited to Mogadishu alone.

Garowe Online Editorial, editorial@garoweonline.com