An open letter to all concerned- Media, Opposition and
the Government

Ibrahim Mead political analyst
Ottawa, Canada
Sunday, September 12, 2010
 

Our inner squabbles will diminish our sense of purpose of nation building

So let us (all) be aware of that and careful how we dispense information.....................
It is a matter of balance and responsibilities for each and all parties concerned

Genuine political opposition and responsible Media are necessary attributes of democracy, tolerance, and trust in the ability of citizens to resolve differences by peaceful means.They are not monster the government to be afraid of!

The existence of an opposition, without which politics ceases and administration takes over, is indispensable to the functioning of democratic political systems

An effective and responsible Opposition and Media are essential for the success of our democracy. Since the Executive has a major influence on whether the Opposition and the Media can play their proper rolls in the system, it is important to focus on the Government´s role; access to resources and information is critical to strengthening the capability of the Opposition and the Media and therefore to their overall credibility. It should be emphasized that the Opposition be enabled to hold the Executive to account and the Media to expose that in a fair, unprejudiced and balanced way.

It is pertinent to stress the importance of freedom of access to the media and on the other side, it is incumbent upon the Media to be very responsible in despising information

Guided by reason and intuition, and drawing on new insights as well as from our past experience, objective thinking is uniquely required in this time and age in our Media out lets, both the electronic and print media. Clan or person based web-sites squabbles with the facts and sometimes develops in to startling confrontations in baseless arguments, and some times with valid ones, to be fair!.

Most people believe this situation is true in the said businesses. Many recognize that the people in our Somaliland who need what we have to offer need that service to be provided in a balanced and prejudice free way.

Such people- the service providers must be our forefront reason for the existence of our Web-sites and other media out lets. So why are we not careful in our criticism for pro or against the ruling entity in which we selectively condemn or condone based on clan lineage and not of real facts and figures?. why do we collaterally cause a shame or damage to our Somaliland because we blindly attack some one or an entity we don't like, and by extension a whole clan? There is a thin and a blare line here, so we have to be careful.

Objective criticism and serious loyal opposition is most welcome in a true and serious democracy. But there is a blare line between this virtue and a casual clan instigated attacks. Bad governments must be exposed, and that is fine as far as I am concerned.And that is the job of the (responsible) media and opposition parties, but it must be fair and balanced.


Lacking the safety of structures that encourage the sharing of commonality in sense of purpose and sharing rich stories, we have attended to our differences,
argued among ourselves, scared away the balanced, objective and perspective arguments .
not that we should avoid all debate or seek perfection, or harmony.

Any ( new ) governing entity going through changes will experience conflict. It is something
closer to squabbling with the media, however, that has often diverted us from our journalistic sense of purpose.

Pervasive divisiveness has driven away some of the objective writers and analysts and truth tellers and seekers who have come through your front doors of your websites and print media. Focusing on our disagreements, we ignore our agreements and the big picture, Mother Somaliland her self!

However peace and prayersw
THE END