A rift has again emerged in Somalia following a decision by the
president and speaker to convene the parliamentary session at home
for the first time since it was created in neighboring Kenya about
two years ago.
Somali Prime Minister Ali Mohammed Gedi has reportedly
criticized the decision to call a key meeting of parliament in the
town of Baidoa, 250 km southwest of Mogadishu later this month,
saying the town is unsafe and that he was not consulted.
President Abdullahi Yusuf and Speaker Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan
announced on Monday in Nairobi after consultations that the
assembly session would be held in Baidoa on February 26.
Analysts said on Wednesday the PM's revelations show continued
divisions within Somalia's transitional administration, despite
anagreement by the president's and speaker's factions to end a rift
that has paralyzed efforts to restore government in the lawless
country.
Gedi said the decision to convene the first meeting of
parliament on Somali soil in Baidoa had been made unilaterally by
the parliament speaker.
"The situation of Somalia today cannot be addressed
individually. The president was neutral but the speaker ignored a
tangible number of members of parliament," he said.
The announcement, which was made in the presence of interim
president, came after days of consultations between the speaker and
the president in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.
Making the announcement, President Yusuf said he supported the
decision on the parliament's planned meeting, and promised to
travel to the southwestern town to officially open the session.
"I want to make it clear that I fully support the decision to
convene the parliamentary session in Baidoa and will travel there
to officially open it in accordance with the charter," Yusuf
said.
Analysts and diplomats say the prime minister's change of mind
stems from fears that he will face a vote of no-confidence at the
first session -- a charge Gedi denies.
Gedi, who previously was allied to Yusuf's faction, said his
priority was to ensure the security and stability of the Horn of
Africa country.
Diplomats had said that fears among Somali factions that the
government may be dissolved or key figures removed at the meeting
may hamper its chances.
Yusuf and Gedi have been based in Jowhar, 90 km north of
Mogadishu, while the speaker, backing by key Mogadishu-based
faction leaders, has been in the capital, Mogadishu.
Baidoa is seen as a compromise between the two factions and
preparations have already begun to clean up the town in readiness
of the first parliamentary session.
Hundreds of Baidoa residents have gone onto the streets to
celebrate the announcement.
Somali officials here said several lawmakers from Mogadishu
andNairobi are traveling to Baidoa within the next three days as an
advance party to lay the groundwork for the meeting.
The Somali leaders have been divided from the time the
government was sworn-in mid-2005 with the speaker often accusing
President Yusuf of undermining his authority granted in accordance
with the interim constitution, the Somali Federal Charter.
The first parliamentary sitting in Somalia, analysts say,
wouldbe a first for the fledgling Somali government since returning
home from exile in June 2005 after its formation following a
protracted peace negotiation process which produced a clan-based
power-sharing accord.
The speaker is believed to control the Mogadishu warlords and is
seen as a major power if the government is to gain support of the
Mogadishu merchants and warlords, who have divided the countryinto
a patch of fiefdoms for revenue administration.
The Horn of Africa nation has been run by warlords since the
ousting of former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991.
The US sent troops into Somalia in 1992 ahead of a UN force
intended to restore order and open aid channels.?
(Xinhua News Agency Febuary 1, 2006)
