With a great pain we are writing this piece because the fabric of Oromo society is attacked by clan politicians, confused Oromos, and the agents of Tigres. Believing that Leenco Baati and Hassan Hussen were Oromo nationalists who could build bridges between the OLF and the Oromo Diaspora, we expected a lot of contributions from them in promoting Oromo nationalism.

We also thought that they would not compromise Oromo nationalism and confuse it with clan or other politics. So we personally did not oppose when they easily climbed the OLF leadership without experience and without demonstrating their commitment to the Oromo national struggle. We wrongly believed that this would diversify the OLF leadership. Since we are ordinary persons, nobody would hold us accountable for our wrong judgment. The same cannot be true for those who have been leading the OLF, particularly its top dog.

The chairman of the OLF, Dawud Ibssa and his inner circle should have known better. He should have studied these individuals and their collaborators such as the Wayane general, Kamal Galchu, before appointing them in the highest positions in the OLF. The OLF has been built with the blood and bones of Oromo heroes and heroines and should not be entrusted with individuals who did not yet demonstrate their commitment to defend the OLF and the Oromo cause.

For these individuals, the OLF is an opposition political organization that must be used for self-promotion through any means including clan politics. Such selfish individuals did not want to share accountability when the OLF leadership faced political crisis and challenge. Whenever there were successes such individuals were ready to take credit, and whenever there were failures they ran to resign from their positions rather than being accountable for their lack of performance.

Furthermore, they accused the OLF for marginalizing them because of their clan identity. It is amazing to hear that Leenco and Hassan have complained that the Arssi Oromos are marginalized, when both of them have voluntarily stepped down from their highest positions in the OLF leadership. It is also amazing that these two individuals cannot demonstrate what they have produced for the OLF except organizing a clan organization within the OLF.

This clan organization claims to fire the OLF leadership from Minneapolis and to successfully takeover the leadership of this organization. Learning from Amhara and Tigres, they have a few Abba Dulas, Butukan Midheksasis to hide their clan politics. Those few elements who have problems with the OLF leadership express their willingness to side with this group and hurt the Oromo national struggle. There are several agents of Tigres in this conspiratorial group, the Meles government has spent several millions of dollars through its embassies.

When Leenco and Hassen were members of the top leadership of the OLF, they were Oromos and when they left their positions they were victimized Arssis. They have used clan politics to hide their incompetence in fulfilling their leadership obligations and they have been hiding under Oromo nationalism to avoid facing responsibility. As they declared in the Ethiopian Review, these two individuals organized their clan organization to join Ethiopian politics by using the brand name, OLF. They have misused and victimized Arssi Oromos who have suffered under Amhara-Tigre colonialism like other Oromos.

They have mobilized innocent individuals who cannot see beyond clan because of the lack of understanding, former Derg cadres and OPDO agents in communities and cyber-spaces such as paltalk to attack the OLF leadership and Oromos from other areas and to spread the poison of clan politics to turn Oromos against one another. It is disgusting that they have done all these things under the name of Oromo nationalism.