Day: July 12, 2019

BREAKING NEWS

Bomb-blasts rock City of Kismayo with unofficial reports of death and injuries. The reports are still sketchy, but there are reports of at least two dozens dead, including Ms. Hodan Naaleeyee and her husband Fariid, and multiple more wounded. Hodan was a Somali-Canadian TV and Radio Presenter from Toronto.

Reports add that the hotel attacked is still under gunfire, as we write, between security forces and gunmen inside the Cascasey Hotel in downtown Kismayo. Unconfirmed reports indicate that there might be other Bomb-blasts elsewhere in the City.

Speculations and rumours are flying wild already in Kismayo and beyond, treating these blasts as election-related violence in Jubaland.

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POLITICAL FALLOUT FROM KHAYRE’S VISIT TO GALKAYO

July 12, 2019
Federal Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre came to GALKAYO and would leave it, leaving behind the City of Galkayo as divided as ever before because of his NN divisive policies.
Khayre’s vist has political fallouts for both Puntland and FGS:
  1. Khayre has enhanced and entensified the bickering, political wrangling and confrontations between FGS and Federal Member States.
  2. Khayre didn’t act as a role model in leadership by being disrespectful to local political authorities and tradional leaders there.
  3. Khayre’s visit to North Galkayo has exposed Puntland’s political weakness and waning of its political influence even within its own constituency, Puntland youth, in particular.
  4. The visit has shown that Puntland political elite is divided on the way forward for Puntland State and its relationships with the FGS and rest of Somalia.
  5. The visit has exposed agents and political activists of N&N in Puntland.
  6. The political damage done to Puntland and FGS cooperative relations as a result of this visit will linger on for quite sometime.
Recommendation
FGS leaders shouldn’t underestimate these political fallouts, instigated and brought about by Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre’s provocative conduct of Galkayo visit.

The poor handling of Khayre’s visit to North Galkayo should act as a clarion call to Puntland Administration officials, in terms of their relations with Puntland population and youth issues, in particular. There must be renewed emphasis on what Puntland State stands for, the legacy of the Civil War and revival of Somali State on the basis of power-sharing, equitable distribution of resources and installation of a government based on checks and balance of power – no more of a City-state, weak public institutions, including rubber-stamp parliament and powerless judiciary – the administration of justice.

There must be a quick damage control before parties develop hardening of attitude and entrenched political positions.