| 17 Dec 17, 2011 - 1:10:01 AM |
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The delegation included Christian Manahl, UN Deputy Special Envoy for Somalia, AU Special Envoy for Somalia, Amb. Boubacar Diara, and IGAD Facilitator for Somalia Kipruto Arap Kirwa and Somali Ambassador to Kenya, Amb. Mohamed Ali America. Puntland ministers welcomed the delegation at Garowe airport.
The delegation met with President Farole to discuss the planned Somalia Constitutional Conference, which was scheduled to be held in Garowe on 15 December but has faced some delays due to parliamentary infighting in Mogadishu.
The Puntland leader told the visiting dignitaries that he would like the conference, which was postponed two times, to begin in Garowe on Tuesday 20 December without any new delays.
Speaking to reporters at the planned conference venue in Garowe alongside Mr. Manahl, Amb. Diara and Amb. Kirwa, President Farole said: “This high-level delegation from the UN, AU and IGAD came to Puntland to assess the situation and preparation for the Conference. As you can see, our government is committed to the Roadmap and has completed all preparations and we are expecting the delegations to arrive in Puntland.”
Continuing, the President commented on why the meeting was postponed yet again, saying: “There are some MPs of the Transitional Federal Parliament (TFP), as well as other politicians including ex-warlords, who do not want this conference to take place in Garowe and they are spoilers of the Roadmap process.”
President Farole added: “As we all know, the Garowe Conference is open to be attended by all the Somali stakeholders who signed the Roadmap, including the Transitional Federal Institutions, Ahlu Sunna group and others.”
Mr. Manahl, the UN Deputy Envoy for Somalia, told reporters in Garowe that the delegation would travel to Mogadishu to meet TFG President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and Speaker of Parliament Sharif Hassan to discuss how they can carry on the proposed constitutional conference for 20 December.
Parliamentary infighting
Responding to President Farole’s comments, former Mogadishu warlord Salad Ali Jeele who is now a TFP lawmaker told a Mogadishu-based radio station that “the Garowe Conference is exclusive for certain people.”
MP Jeele’s radio comments were in contrast to transparency of Puntland authorities and the UN-backed Roadmap process, for which the constitutional conference is an important component.
On Dec. 13, a group of TFP lawmakers held a parliament session in Mogadishu with the Speaker and Deputy Speakers absent. According to this group of MPs, they held a no-confidence vote to oust Speaker Sharif Hassan.
However, Mr. Sharif and his Deputy Speaker Mr. Mohamed Ali Mudey rejected the parliament vote as illegal, saying the MPs violated parliamentary bylaws and the spirit of the Kampala Accord, which led to the adoption of the Roadmap process.
Fistfights broke out in parliament after the two groups of MPs fought over the controversial vote.
The TFG has been gripped with political infighting which has lately escalated and also the threat of terrorists who engaged in relentless violence against the TFG and African peacekeepers (AMISOM) in Mogadishu.
The European Union issued a strongly worded statement, saying: “As the UN Security Council set out in May, the TFIs cannot assume that the support of the international community will continue indefinitely and we reiterate the international community’s willingness to consider sanctions against spoilers of the peace process.”Read Full Statement
Since coming to power in 2004, the TFIs have been dependent on international support to pay for army salaries and analysts say the strong warning sends a clear message to Somali leaders.
GAROWEONLINE
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