His Excellency the President of the Republic of Somaliland, Musa Bihi Abdi, Tuesday, attended the graduation of an elite, specially selected units trained at the Lixle Police Academy for services with immigration and police forces.

Speaking to the graduating officers, the President underlined that an all-pervasive, positive reform of the law enforcement bodies can only come from strength of character of individual officers bolstering the kind of focused, hands-on training.

“Nobody can keep another person’s hand forever. One only needs to be helped up once and shown the way forward when and where need be. The rest is up to you. What makes you make of yourself is what characterizes how others see you,” the President said.

The President cited how major, now developed countries have risen from the ashes from devastating adversities, wars and holocausts to become leading, most reckoned with economies and superpowers within no time at all.

‘Self-reliance is the key,” he said.

The President urged the new officers to project a caring, professional image of the security and law enforcement bodies of the Republic of Somaliland to the public,” he said.

The new units were carefully vetted from all over the regions of Somaliland. None was to be older than twenty-five. None of them has social vices such as smoking or munching Qat. The selection is part of an ongoing reform program to completely turn security branches inside out, weeding out negative habits and in implanting new, more committed blood to create the kind of environment commensurate with a complete facelift coupled with an uplifted service delivery.

With the President, especially at this occasion, was the Commissioner of the Police Forces, Brigadier-General Mohamed Adan Sanqadhi ‘Dabagale’, the Army Chief of Staff, Major-General Nuh Ismail Tani, Commander of the Custodial Corps, Major-General Ahmed Awale Yussuf ‘Libah’, and the Commander of the Coast Guards, Brigadier-General Mohamed Farah Hirane.