Farah Maalim accuses TPLF of undermining Ethiopian PM to justify secession

NAIROBI, Kenya - The Tigray People's Liberation Front [TPLF] party has been accused of fueling online ethnic violence in Ethiopia as a wider strategy to push for secession, Garowe Online reports.

Despite winning the Nobel Peace Prize recently following success in mediating Eritrea conflict, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has struggled to calm ethnic tensions within his country.

In the north, new and old conflicts across the North Gondar zone in Amhara Region have displaced tens of thousands of Amharas, as Kemants have made demands for self-administration.

Tensions between the Amhara and Tigray regions are rising over border disputes. Meanwhile, the TPLF which dominated the country's ethnic coalition for over 27 years before Abiy's ascent to power, has become a political entity that defies the federal political order.

And former Lagdera MP and National Assembly Deputy Speaker in Kenya Farah Maalim believe that the TPLF party is determined to frustrate Abiy, who took over in 2018.

Maalim, who has often appeared in TV interviews as an expert in Horn of Africa politics, says TPLF is behind the deadly clashes between Somali and Oromo in Ethiopia.

According to him, the party's long term strategy is to make Ethiopia ungovernable and call did secession. Maalim now wants TPLF held accountable for the ongoing crisis.

"The old TPLF strategy of causing deadly clashes between the Somali & Oromo to undermine Abiy’s Government is now focused on Afar/Somali in Siti. The mayhem between all neighbor Ethiopian States will not abate until Tigray is brought fully under the control of Addis," he said in a tweet.

"TPLF will plunge Ethiopia into chaos to justify secession. If they can't rule all Ethiopians forever and maintain nation in bondage then Ethiopia should disintegrate. A defining moment in history."

Last week, TPLF accused the ruling coalition of working on transforming the coalition into a single united party and making the project appear as if it is intended to demolish the federal form of government.

But Ethiopia’s ruling coalition, Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front [EPRDF], dismissed the speculations, arguing that the federal system will not be abolished.

“To make the unity within EPRDF appear as if it could cause the end of the federal system of government does not hold water,” read a statement from the party.

EPRDF is composed of three ethnic-based political organizations and one multi-ethnic organization. And TPLF is one of the ethnic-based organizations that constitute the ruling coalition -EPRDF.

Besides the internal crisis in Ethiopia, Abiy is also facing another predicament in Somalia, where he's accused of plotting to dictate political arrangements within Jubaland.

Last year, Ethiopia was accused of orchestrating the arrest of former Al-Shabaab spokesman Mukhtar Robow, despite the fact that he had ditched the terrorist group. He was sent to jail in Mogadishu.

Reporting by Abuga Makori; Editing by Omar Nor

GAROWE ONLINE