1) Name and biographical data of the governor of Mogadishu in 1968. 2) What were the functions and duties of a governor under the regime of President Sharmarke? 3) What were the functions and duties of a district commissioner under that regime? [SOM9437]
1) Adam Jama Bihi, who was a senior officer with the Central Bank
of Somalia in 1968 cannot recall who the governor of Mogadishu was
at the time. He is, however, able to remember that the mayor of the
city in 1968 was a very tall man by the name of Sharif Ahmed
Aidarus. His surname can also be spelled "Aydarus" or "Eidarus."
A Mr. Sharmarke, who was in Somalia in 1968 and is now with Costi
in Toronto, can only remember the nickname of the man who was
governor of Mogadishu at the time, which was Harag Wein ("big
skin").
2) According to Said Samatar, a professor of history at New Jersey
University, governors under Sharmarke had considerably more power
than in the successor regime of Siad Barre. They had command of the
district police force and significant powers relating to taxation
and tax collection.
Mr. Bihi adds, however, that in Mogadishu, because of the central
government and the presence of a powerful elected mayor, the
governor was little more than a figurehead.
3) According to Prof. Samatar, governors and district
commissioners have the same type of powers. The area under a
governor's jurisdiction, however, took in that of surrounding
areas, making district commissioners subordinate to the governor's
authority.