Inside Hassan Sheikh's momentous Town Hall meeting in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The role of foreign soldiers drawn outside the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia [ATMIS], the fight against Al-Shabaab, defining contributions of the United Arab Emirates [UAE] and revolutionizing Somalia's democracy are some of the emerging issues from President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's first ever Town Hall meeting on Monday.

In a fully packed room at a Mogadishu Hotel, Hassan Sheikh seized the momentous opportunity to highlight some of the achievements for the last 12 months ahead of his first anniversary as president for the second term. Hassan Sheikh www first elected in 2012 before recapturing the seat last year in a crowded presidential race.

Frontline countries, he said, will contribute non-ATMIS troops to Somalia, who will work under the command of the Somali National Army [SNA] with the command centre expected to be mounted in Mogadishu. Somalia hosts close to 22,000 peacekeeping mission troops from five countries under the ATMIS component.

The non-ATMIS component, he added, will serve in the country for a period of three months and their main mandate will be carrying out "special joint operations" in the war against Al-Shabaab militants. Already, Ethiopia has started dispatching soldiers for the course with Kenya and Djibouti expected to implement the agreement.

Of importance, the president noted, the country is focused on eliminating Al-Shabaab militants. With the reinforcement from non-ATMIS troops, Somalia will activate the second phase of operations against Al-Shabaab, which will focus on dislodging the militants from the Southwest and Jubaland states.

"The military offensive's second phase has not yet begun, as we remain in the final stages of the first phase of the operations. Our forces have dealt significant blows to AS in HirShabelle and Galmudug. The next phase of the offensive will shift focus to Jubaland and South West regions," he said.

The relationship between UAE and Somalia was also elaborately discussed given the trajectory it has taken in recent weeks. Previously, UAE and Qatar scrambled for influence in Somalia with former President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed better known as Farmaajo preferring Doha to Abu Dhabi.

"They train out soldiers, equip them, pay their salary … without expecting anything in return," he said while defending the contributions by UAE to Somalia's state-building process. Under Farmajo's administration, a $10 million donation from UAE was frozen for claims that it was meant to bail out the opposition yet it was supposed to be paid to resilient military officers.

For a period of five years, Qatar and UAE were directly involved in the battle to control Somalia's affairs but Hassan Sheikh maintains the relationship with Abu Dhabi is anchored in bilateral ties as defined by international standards. Hassan Sheikh visited Dubai after taking oath as president for the second term.

On the Las Anod conflict, Hassan Sheikh said his government is working on finding a peaceful solution between Somaliland troops and SSC-Khatumo forces, adding that FGS also wants to keep the door for dialogue with Somaliland open. "We have special sympathy for SCS people since they carry the Somali flag and want unity," he said.

The conflict has left over 200 people dead with locals demanding to be governed from Mogadishu instead of Hargeisa, the regional administrative capital of Somaliland. The state broke away from Somalia in 1991 following a civil war but it is yet to be recognized internationally, thus the reconciliation efforts.

Hassan Sheikh vehemently denied encroaching on the powers of his PM Hamza Abdi Barre, who is the head of government according to the constitution of Somalia. He vowed to prepare direct elections for the country in 2026, the first ever in decades, which would pave the way for the democratization of political processes in the country.

When asked about nepotism in his government, the president emphasized that leaders' families are citizens and deserve equal rights, addressing reports of family members being hired for government jobs. There have been claims that he has been considering his immediate family members for appointments.

For the first time in as many months, the president held a town hall discussion to update the country on some of his achievements. His main focus seems to be on eliminating Al-Shabaab militants and creating a cohesive country for future generations thus the unprecedented investments into the course, analysts say.

GAROWE ONLINE