The National Committee for the Preparation and Celebration of the 33rd Anniversary of the 18th May National Day Urges the Populaces
By M. A. Egge
The national committee charged with the task of the preparation and commemoration of the 18TH May Day celebrations have called on the members of the public within the country and abroad to make the marking of the national day elaborately more intense and extensive as never before.
They made the call on Tuesday when the committee that was appointed and named by the Head of State met to assess and appraise the ongoing preparations under the chairmanship of the interior minister Hon. Mohamed Kahin Ahmed.
Both he and his Information, Culture and National Guidance colleague Hon. Ali Mohamed Hassan popularly known as Ali-Mareehan and the Hargeisa city Mayor Cllr. Abdikarim Ahmed Mooge spoke at length on the importance of the day in the nation’s history.
Hon. Kahin reminded Somalilanders that May 18th is a day that is for everyone and the nation marking the day the nation re-asserted its independence which it initially won from the colonial yokes on the 26th of June 1960.
Noting that each country has its history and heritage that they mark elaborately, he said that it was incumbent upon all people, the young, old and sundry to duly play their part in making the day a success.
He urged the youth to learn of the history of their nation and be steadfastly patriotic.
“I call upon the entire nation of Somaliland, all the citizens both at home and abroad, to prepare for this occasion with unity and togetherness and mark it elaborately”, he said.
He continued, “We all have a duty to celebrate this national day just as we also have an obligated duty to protect our peace and security concertedly”.
On his part, Hon. Ali Hassan Mohamed indicated the need to celebrate the 33rd anniversary of the Republic of Somaliland re-asserting its independence on 18th May 1991 by noting, “The purpose of this meeting is related to the commemoration of the great event of May 18, which today has ten days left to prepare for and mark the great day”.
He said that the preparations and conviction to make it elaborate should go on until the D’Day.
He was categorical that this year’s 33rd anniversary should be the most strikingly dynamic.
Given the steadfast aspirations o the people of Somaliland in gaining international recognition, the minister said that it was incumbent upon the populaces to tirelessly elaborate it to the world and underpin the resilience of the nation and its people being rebuild itself fully from ruins.
The Minister of Information said that the majority of the youth who are those born after 1991 do not have information about the destruction that the regime of Siad Barre brought to the capital of Hargeisa and other major towns hence in a recent tentative ‘voxpop’ interviews pointed out that they grew up to see a modern nation devoid of the said genocidal and apocalyptic ruins subjected to the nation; hence they ought to know of the nation’s history and the struggles of both the initial independence and the second liberation of re-asserting and re-establishing the essence and independent nation hood of the Republic of Somaliland.
He said that the destructions perpetrated by the then Somalia regime left no stone in seeing to it that no living soul, commercial and residential buildings, mosques or even trees stood, and as such the youth who never witnessed it or its aftermath have to know the history. He said that Somalilanders have the obligation to scoff and rebuke the Mogadishu government’s dream of trying to curtail and stunt Somalilands aspirations and progress by being most elaborate than ever in marking this year’s 33rd anniversary.
The Minister of Education Hon. Dr. Ahmed Adan Buhane and the Hargeisa city Mayor also echoed similar words in their addresses at the meeting.
Cllr. Abdikarim notably urged for the solidarity and unity of the nation to concertedly have the state, political parties and the general populaces to make both the preparations and observation of the commemoration become a resounding success.
He particularly appealed to the residents of the capital city to intensively and extensively indulge in the preparations to flamboyantly observe the anniversary.
Meanwhile, such preparations were going on in other regions and districts across the country.
The Gebilay governor appointed his deputy to lead a similar committee at the regional level in which included the local mayor amongst other officials to see to it that the national celebrations becomes a success.
This year will be the 33rd anniversary of the 18th May national celebrations that the country has always annually marked is to honour the day the nation re-asserted and re-established its independence is this year felt, palpitated and expected with more enthusiasm and anxiety more than ever before.
The aspirations of the populaces for the endeavours of their hopes, wishes and wants as far as the Republic of Somaliland is concerned, is more evident than ever.
The security forces public parade in the itinerary is expected to be the biggest and largest the country has yet witnessed 33 years down the line.
The anniversary which is now ten days away has strongly been felt nationwide at the markets which has done more than ample sales from miniature flags to billboards, t-shirts and assorted dresses and patriotic materials and gears.
The most sold items in the country’s markets in the month of May are the Somaliland flag and the materials and associated accessories to celebrate the 18th of May, and every place and every business is waving the tricolor flag.
People’s feelings are similar when you see how happy they are that one might be mistaken to assume that the main event ws to be held the following day!