AU forces fete 42 military officers in Somalia

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The African Union Mission in Somalia [AMISOM] honoured 42 senior military officers serving within headquarters in Mogadishu, in the latest recognition for their contributions towards peace and stability in Somalia, which has been struggling with inter-clan conflicts and Al-Shabaab menace for decades.

According to AMISOM, senior officers from 10 African countries were honoured by the outgoing Force Commander Lieutenant General Tigabu Yilma, who is set to officially leave by the end of this month. The recognized officers hail from Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Egypt, Uganda, Kenya, Burundi, Ghana, Eswatini, Ethiopia and Zambia.

Also present during the decoration exercise were Lt. Gen Yilma's Deputies, Major General Nakibus Lakara, in-charge of Operations and Plans, and Major General George Owinow, who is in charge of Logistics and Supplies.

The Force Commander praised the staff officers for conceptualizing, planning and mapping out the military component’s work at a strategic level before it is operationalized on the ground by the different combat groups in the fight against the Al-Shabaab.

Yilma, a veteran ENDF commander, said it was because of the important supportive role played by the staff officers that AMISOM continues to register noteworthy successes against the Al-Shabaab, hence, achieving its mandate of peace and security in Somalia.

“We have secured the population. We have secured the main supply routes. We have degraded Al-Shabaab everywhere. AMISOM Military, jointly with the Somali National Army [SNA], have sacrificed their lives for this. To succeed on a mission like this, it takes a military with strong combat support and strong combat service support," he said.

"Staff officers are the key to the military. Without strong combat service support, we cannot do anything, we cannot achieve. That’s why now our task is achieved – because we have a strong military and strong staff officers and I want to congratulate you,” added the officer.

AMISOM Chief Military Personnel and Administration Officer, Colonel Mohamed Sadique Fofanah from the Sierra Leone military, who was also honoured, said receiving a service medal for taking part in the peace-building process of another country meant a lot to him as someone from a country that was ravaged by war for 11 years.

“This medal serves as a recognition of my contribution to bringing peace to Somalia, and at the same time, it serves a souvenir. Equally so, from my background, I come from Sierra Leone, which fought an 11-year civil war, and during the peak of our war, other countries contributed troops to bring peace to my country," he said.

"So, I feel very much delighted today, to be part of this ceremony, as my payback time, for me to contribute in bringing peace to another nation,” added Fofanah, whose country was a beneficiary of African Union Mission soldiers, who helped to calm the war in Sierra Leone, which left thousands dead.

Lt. Gen Yilma will be replaced by Diomede Ndegeya, also of the same rank, who has been serving with Burundi army. He was introduced to the forces early this month by AMISOM top envoy Francisco Madeira but will be assuming duties by the beginning of this coming month.

Throughout his tenure as Force Commander, Yilma managed to mobilise the troops against the Al-Shabaab and it's during his time that the soldiers managed to thwart several Al-Shabaab attacks on military bases. However, he's accused of incorporating the Ethiopian non-AMISOM troops in Somalia without approval from AU summit in Addis Ababa.

GAROWE ONLINE