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Sultan Omar Shuria may not have featured prominently in the history of this country, but his contribution in the northern frontier districts during the colonial days speaks volumes.

Unknown to many, the little known Sultan played a major role in stopping Kenyan Somalis� plan to secede to Somalia Republic shortly after independence in the late 1960s.

The secession quest reached fever-pitch in the early 70s when locals staged one of the longest uprisings in the history of the country, dubbed the "Shifta war"

"As armed dissidents frustrated the Government�s efforts to restore peace, Omar ensured the present day northeastern province remained in Kenya.

For were it not for his resistance to the proposal, the region could have probably seceded from Kenya.

And it was against this background that the council of Somali elders secretly endorsed the decision to silence Omar, saying he was a threat to their common cause.

They did away with him in 1969 when his own security guards were instructed to eliminate him. He died after 20 bullets were pumped into him at close range.

It was during this period that the first Somali District Commissioner was appointed presumably to tame and gain the confidence of locals in after the collapse of the chiefdoms.

The DC was the late Sultan�s son, Abdi Omar Shuria , who became the most highly placed Somali in the
Kenyatta regime and was posted to Wajir in 1970.

He later served in similar capacity in various districts after containing the insurgency. He was promoted to senior DC and posted to Kwale.
Abdi, who was a notable chain smoker, died on January 27, 2025 after a short illness. He was survived by two widows and 11children. His death however, ushered one of the longest civil cases in Kenyan history and remains unresolved to date. Two of his widows are currently engaged in a landmark legal tussle over inheritance of his estate running into millions of shillings.

The case has been in the High Court for more than 24 years as a once royal family languishes in poverty.

Abdi�s assets estimated at 12 million shillings, were put under the administration of a public trustee over the period and none of the family members has had a chance to enjoy the proceeds of his investments.

The property in contention includes a maisonette in Nairobi�s Ngumo Estate, three villas in Garissa, a plot in Eldoret and his benefits and shares in several companies.

His first wife Kuresha Mohamed Abdille says the case was finalised in 1987 by a Khadhi�s court in accordance with Islamic inheritance laws, but that the public trustee appeared reluctant to honour the ruling. Kuresha says she now relies on relatives to bring up her extended family, most of who are now married and want a share of their inheritance without further delay.

"Am ageing and do not know what might befall my children, if I died before this matter was sorted out. I am renting houses for them yet their father built each one of them a room in Nairobi and Garissa," she said.

The case was recently brought to Parliament and addressed to the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs Krait Murungi but no response has been forthcoming.

Source: The Standard Of Kenya