The parliament is the backbone of the fight against corruption because it represents the citizens and the interests of the people (Harutyunyan, 2021). An effective and independent parliament creates an independent separate power balance among the legislature, executive, and judiciary branches, which could result in parliament battling and reducing corruption. The legislature is a crucial part of a country's democratic structure of balance and scrutiny. The parliament was established to represent the interests and aspirations of the people and to provide a voice and opportunity for government participation to citizens (Johnston, 2006) Somalia Federal Parliament is a foundation for all government institutions, it elects the president, gives a vote of confidence in the prime minister appointed by the president, approves the council of the ministers, adapts judiciary service commission, and other independent commissions, passes laws and international treaties which the government engaged them according to Somalia Federal Provisional Constitution.
Additionally, Parliament has absolute power of oversight
which aims to ensure that the
government and its institution use its
power and available resources to respond to the aspirations and interests of citizens. It has three main
functions such as legislation,
representation, and oversight, that contributing to combating of corruption.
The legislative function
of parliament is responsible for drafting, reviewing
and adapting bills about the country, especially the
draft legislation about corruption.
Article 80 of Somalia Provisional Constitution
gives a mandate to the parliament to
initiate the bills which can reduce rampant corruption.
The second function
of parliament is representation: the parliament represents the interests of constituencies and Somalia’s national
interest according to Article 61 of Somalia's
Provisional Constitution.
The third function
of parliament is oversight: Schick,
(1976) defined oversight as “legislative
supervision of policies and programs enacted by legislatures”. The oversight is an important function and constitutional
mandate to hold the government and its institutions accountable (Stapenhurst et
al., 2006).
The effective implementation of parliamentary functions could lead Somalia
Federal Parliament to contribute to battling the unprecedented corruption that undermines Somalia's
The study of corruption has become an important
issue in Somalia since 2006, because
Somalia has had the lowest
country index ranking
for perceived corruption, according to
International Transparent.
Although, current Somalia president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
has declared a crackdown on corruption, nine (9) people suspects of corruption have
been indicted including high-rank officers of
the Ministry of Labor and Social Service, Central Bank, and Immigration
and Naturalization Agency. At the same time,
others escaped from the county (TRT Afrika, 2023).
Combating corruption requires more than the executive branch’s efforts, and
the battle against corruption must be common
to all people, including the government, parliament, civil society, and the academies. However, the president’s
critics claim that his efforts to reduce corruption are only aimed to appease the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and
donors because high-ranking officers are involved in massive corruption.
The parliament is
a significant institution for
the center of the fight against
corruption because the Somalia
parliament has the power and mandate
to summon the prime minister and his cabinet and other chairpersons of independent
commissions according to the 69 of Somalia Constitution. As well as it has budgetary oversight that scrutinizes public funds and resources used in line with national interest
and laws that the parliament passed. Much of the
research in this area has been
conducted but the parliamentary fight against corruption depends on the capacity of the legislature including
finance, human capital, experts, and ethics and morals.
The aim and objective of this policy brief is to
address the role of the Somalia Federal Parliament in battling corruption. It examined how the constitutional mandate of Somalia's parliament could mitigate the
widespread corruption that
politically and economically
paralyzes the Somalia state and socio-economic development.
The policy investigates the role of the
Somalia Federal Parliament in combating corruption, using the mandate and power
that the constitution and rules of procedure provide
them. The implementation of effective and independent oversight could reduce
the rampant corruption that undermines Somali political institutions, destroys the rule of law, impedes and economic
growth and development.
Overview of Somalia's Corruption
World
Bank (2005) defines
corruption as abuse of public
office for private
gain. Corruption is a complex social, political, and economic phenomenon that exists in every society to diverse degrees. (David, 2012).
It is hampering government institutions, eroding the rule of law, destroying social cohesion, and
stagnating economic growth and development due
to public funds allocated to invest in public services going to
personal pockets.
Since 2006, Somalia
has been ranked
on the lowest perception index
of International Transparency
(Kaunain Rahman, 2017).
Perpetual inter-conflict, political instability, dysfunctional institutions, fragility of the state, and terrorism make Somalia the most corrupt country in the world, according to Transparency International. Prevailed forms of corruption in Somalia include nepotism, favoritism, power abuse, intimidation, bribes, cronyism, political patronage, and vote-buying.
Functions and Oversight's Tools Somali Parliament in Combating Corruption
Every Parliament has three
functions: law-making,
representation, and oversight.
According to Somalia's Federal Provisional Constitution, the Federal Parliament
has comparable functions. Implementing parliamentary functions would reduce
the corruption in Somalia that impedes the Somali state's revival
and social and economic development.
The Somalia parliament must implement its functions and oversight tools per the Provisional Constitution to battle rampant corruption.
Legislation
Parliament is charged with drafting, amending, reviewing, and passing the bills introduced according to articles 63 and 69 of the Somalia Provisional Constitution. In addition, Article 80 stipulates that ten (10) members of the Somalia Federal Parliament can initiate the bill except the annual budget law.
The
use of the Somali parliament
for this function by initiating and approving the anti- corruption law and other resolutions should contribute to curbing the endemic corruption in Somalia.
Representation
Article 61 of Somalia's constitution mention the members of parliament
represent their constituencies where they have been elected regardless of their political view and party or
other affiliation.
The parliamentarian represents the citizens and expresses the views and beliefs of their constituencies under the
constitution. Furthermore, the representation could lead to various
challenges, including concerns and
opinions from citizens and trade
unions of their constituencies. The
way for lawmakers to represent their constituencies is to bring their
concerns, including the rampant corruption to the committee
and plenty of meetings, which erode the rule of law, dismantle the public institution, destroy public service delivery, stagnate economic
growth and development and the corruption threaten and affect the poor people in the worst way.
Oversight
Oversight means that the parliament has to ensure the policies and laws are
implemented in accordance with the approved laws and citizens'
wishes. It is scrutinizing the government and its institutions to use its power, available public funds and natural resources appropriately to meet citizens' aspirations and
interests. Parliamentary oversight
is a vital tool of legislature
functions that can help guarantee
that the government's decisions and actions
are harmonized with passed
laws. The Somalia Provisional Constitution and
Rules of Procedures of the
House of People stipulate the
parliamentarian's absolute power and
oversight tools to constrain the executive power and how the resources are
allocated. According to Somalia’s constitution and Rule of Procedure,
the legislators have the following
oversight tools to fight
against corruption constrain power abuse, and prevent embezzlement of public finance
by the government and its
institutions.
Summoning of the Prime Minister and his Council of Ministers
The
House of the People of Somalia Federal Parliament is mandated to summon the prime minister and his council
of ministers to ask
them issues relevant to their activities and review
their duties (The Federal Republic
of Somalia, 2012). The parliament has the power to give a
vote of confidence and conduct a
vote of non-confidence of the prime minister and his cabinet.
Committee Inquiry
The committee's inquiry sought evidence with
the specific issue of the department of government relevant
to a parliamentary committee. It asks the ministry and other institutions of the government for documents and other information to carry out
the inquiry of specific issues. The
committee can hold public hearings that host the experts of that issue to get the information from them (House of The
People, 2022).
The committee's oversight ensures the implementation of national laws by scrutinizing the tasks of ministries and other institutions of government under the jurisdiction of the parliament, according to Article 56 of the Rule of Procedure. Using these tools committee's oversight should reduce the corruption inside the government institutions.
Question for Government for Oral Question
During the parliamentary session, every
Sunday's agenda will include the oral
question, which shall be at most 90 minutes
according to article 63 of Rule
of The Procedure. The legislators use this tool to ask questions of the ministers, chairpersons of
independent institutions, and other high-ranking officials. Parliamentarians use oral questions to inquire
about the issues of the government, like corruption and other government performance.
Interpellation
According to Article 62 of the Rule of Procedure of the House
of The People, ten (10)
parliamentarians may file a motion
of formal question to debate issues
relevant to the tasks of the prime minister and ministers. Interpolation is one of the
significant scrutiny tools that the legislature uses to
monitor the government. In contrast, the government dislikes the interpellation
because it immediately shifts the removal motion of prime ministers or
ministers who have failed to respond to or justify
the government policy.
Using interpellation is
critical to reducing the widespread corruption
that plagues Somali institutions
Questions for Writing Answers
Legislators can submit written
questions about the prime minister
and minister about their duties and functions. The answer will be given within two (2)
weeks of the date the written
question is submitted, as stated in
Article 64 of the Rule of Procedure
of the House of the People of
Somalia Federal Parliament. This tool intended
that the lawmakers send
written explanations to officers
suspected of being
corrupt. Applying this tool facilitates combating corruption.
Parliamentary Oversight over the Budget
Parliamentary oversight is a vital mechanism to improve government accountability and transparency. Effective
budget oversight ensures
public service delivery's effectiveness and
taxpayers' money is raised and spent correctly. The legislature's oversight is intended to monitor the government's use of public resources and the provision of public services. The legislature has to
scrutinize the public budget's
estimation, formulation, and approval (Commonwealth Parliamentary Association,
2022).
Under Article 100 of the Rule of Procedure of the House
of Peoples of the Somalia Federal Parliament, the amendment
of the draft budget, approval, and
monitoring are the responsibility of the Somalia
Parliament. Furthermore, the Parliamentary Committee on Budget and Finance is amending the draft budget and submitting it to Parliament.
In Somalia, parliament budget scrutiny is ineffective due to the late submission of the budget draft and the intertwining of the Ministry of Finance and the majority of the Committee of Budget and Finance.
Conclusion and Recommendations
The ineffective lack of Somali
parliament functions, including representation, legislation, and oversight, significantly impacts the
corruption that undermines Somalia's political institutions, public service
delivery, and socioeconomic development. The vast corruption in Somalia induces power
abuse, rampant embezzlement of public funds,
nepotism, cronyism, a lack of public service, income inequality, and
extreme poverty.
It is time that parliamentarians consider the legislature's functions as the main tools in the fight against corruption. The Somalia constitution stipulates that legislators have the absolute power to hold the government accountable for their tasks and summon independent institutions' prime ministers, ministers, and chairpersons to review their duties and functions. The effective implementation of parliamentarian functions and oversight tools in the Somalia constitutions and Rule of Procedure can alleviate rampant corruption in Somalia.
Recommendation
Based on the Somalia Constitution and Rule of Procedure, the policy brief
recommends:
- Somalia's Parliament has to implement effectively the legislature functions and tools of oversight stated in Somalia's constitution and rule of procedure to curb the rampant corruption that undermines governmental institutions and socioeconomic development;
- Lawmakers must perform their duties ethically and morally to their constituencies and the nation;
- The Parliament has to pass anti-corruption-related laws to hold government officials accountable for their power abuse and misappropriation of public funds; and
- Under Somalia's constitution, the Parliament is the foundation of government and a vital institution of accountability. Therefore, it may play a key role in promoting accountability through parliamentary committees, public hearings, and constituency outreach.
References
Afrika, T. (2023). Somalia to prosecute 18 top officials over
corruption. https://www.trtafrika.com/africa/somalia-to-prosecute-18-top-officials-over-corruption- 13925353
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Harutyunyan, K. (2021). The role of Parliament in the fight
against corruption. Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD).,
51(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bar.2018.06.001
Johnston, N. (2006). Financial Oversight: a Handbook for Parliamentarians.
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(2012). Provisional Constitution (Issue June).
By Ahmed Mohamoud Mohamed
A technocrat, lecturer and researcher with over a decade of experience in public administration, particularly in the Somali Federal Parliament. He holds a Master of Public Management from the Korean Development Institute School of Public Policy and a Master of International Relations and Diplomacy from Kampala University. Ahmed has served in various significant roles, including as a Budget and Public Policy Analyst at the Somali Federal Parliament, where he provides critical analysis of fiscal policies and government expenditure.
