Somalia: Farmaajo, PM Roble under mounting Int'l pressure to reconcile

MOGADISHU, Somalia - After weeks of serious political intrigues in Somalia, members of the international community now want Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble and outgoing President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo to reconcile for the sake of stability in the Horn of Africa nation.

The two protagonists have been embroiled in a political spat triggered by the death of Ikran Tahlil, a junior employee within the National Intelligence Security Agency [NISA], which forced breathtaking changes engineered by PM Roble.

In a statement, the international partners asked the two leaders to immediately call for a ceasefire and focus on the implementation of political pacts signed on September 2020 and the most recent which was signed on May 27.

"As Somalis mark the one-year anniversary of the 17 September Agreement, international partners* are increasingly alarmed that the escalating dispute between the President and Prime Minister will undermine Somalia’s stability and derail the electoral process," read the statement.

"We urge the President and Prime Minister to resolve their differences immediately, avoid further unhelpful exchanges of public statements and personnel announcements, refrain from any action that could destabilize the security situation, and re-focus on concluding the overdue elections without further delay.

"The Somali people need and deserve effective and inclusive governance. The ongoing division and politicization risk undermining the important progress that has been made," they said, noting that the stability of Somalia is important at this time.

Before the statement was released, several foreign diplomats in Mogadishu said they are “increasingly alarmed” by the dispute between Farmaajo and Mohamed Hussein Roble; the warning dispute will undermine Somalia’s stability and derail the electoral process; and urged the two to resolve their differences immediately.

Farmaajo suspended the powers of Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble recently but the PM dismissed the move as "unconstitutional". The country is now in limbo, with both political factions wrangling on the control of the government.

GAROWE ONLINE