Somalia: Ex-regional leader blocked from boarding a flight at Mogadishu airport

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, the former Southwest president, was blocked from travelling to Baidoa, the regional administrative capital of the state, where he was set to vie for a parliamentary seat, it has been established.

Multiple sources intimated that Aden was blocked on Sunday morning and Aden Adde International Airport in Mogadishu, a move that comes days after NISA denied the outgoing deputy House speaker Abdiweli Mudey to travel to Barawe, seeking re-election to the parliament.

But according to the Interior Ministry, the former regional leader was cleared along with his bodyguards to travel. The Ministry is under the leadership of Abdullahi Mohamed Nor, a close ally of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble.

Aden who serves as the 9th Speaker of the Parliament of Somalia 2010-2012 has been critical of how the current government operates, and the outgoing president Farmaajo who is known for intimidating critics and blocking them from travelling at Mogadishu airport.

Further, in the elections where voter bribery and rigging have dominated headlines, former Lower House Speaker Mohamed Sheikh Osman Jawari was also blocked from travelling. Abdiaziz Lafta-Gareen, the current regional leader, is a close ally of Farmaajo.

Afyare Elmi, the Executive Director of Heritage Institute of Policy Studies, a Mogadishu-based Think Tank, says the current federal and states leaders are not respecting laws of the country which are anchored in the transitional constitution.

"Somalia's political leaders [FGS and FMSs] are not respecting any laws (constitution, laws, basic procedures) or even common sense. Nomination replaced the indirect elections/selections. Powergrap is in the making. Can we manage the transition peacefully? I hope and pray for that," he notes.

Elections are yet to be concluded and stakeholders have since been given the new deadline which is on March 15. After the elections, the legislators are set to elect the president of the federal republic of Somalia, where Farmaajo is seeking to defend his seat.

GAROWE ONLINE