Kenyan minister slams UN official on Jubbaland crisis

Nairobi (Keydmedia) - A Kenyan influential minister has accused a UN official of misleading the current Somalia peace initiative. The minister, who hails from western Kenya, said Matt Bryden, Coordinator of the United Nations Somalia and Eritrea Monitoring Group, was behind the recent shoddy meeting on Jubbaland held in Nairobi.
News Keydmedia Online

Speaking to Wagosha news desk in New York by telephone, the minister, who declined to be named, said Bryden’s move to interfere with domestic Somali politics was a potential risk to Kenyan security, and that it would be better for Kenyan government to avoid such traps that can compromise the country’s stability.

Although he declined to elaborate and give more details regarding his condemnation, the minister said some Kenyan politicians of Somali origin, and foreign countries are working together  to favour specific clan to conquer Jubbaland regions in Southern Somalia,  while the majority clans in these regions were totally left out in the process.

“I can confirm that the Kenyan government received complaints from Somali clans on Jubbaland meeting held in Kenya in the pretext of reconciliation. They gave us facts of what is going on. But unfortunately, the Kenyan state minister for defence Mohamed Yusuf Haji, told the cabinet that there was nothing to worry and that all other clans opposing the Nairobi meeting will be silenced easily” said the minister.

Kenyan state minister for defence Yusuf Haji is a close relative to Mohamed Abdi Gandi , a warlord from Ethiopian region of Zone Five, who unsuccessfully tried to create so called Azania state for Jubbaland with the help of Kenya.
“Its Bryden who drafted the list of the few individuals who attended the Jubbaland meeting in Nairobi, and as a Kenyan, I did not know much about Somalia politics, until I was informed that all the participants were from one clan. This is really going to backfire” added the minister, who confirmed that Kenyan cabinet is divided over the move of sending troops to Somalia.

Reliable sources from Kenyan intelligence also confirmed that the government officials are divided on Jubbaland issue, some of them expressing concerns that the issue is being used to promote clan interests.

Matt Bryden, also known as Matthew Bryden, has always been a controversial figure in Somalia politics. He has been in loggerheads with Somali political groups, including businessmen, intellectuals and others.

Recently, the UN Nations withdrawn allegations against a Somali business firm (HORMUUD). The allegations were compiled by the UN Monitoring Group, but, the company officials complained about the credibility of the report and the gross allegations made against their firm.

Last year in Kenya, the UN Monitoring Group led by Bryden linked some Kenyan government officials of with Al Shabab funds, but the officials ( a minister and MP), vehemently denied the allegations. An individual called Babatunde Taiwoo was reported by several Kenyan media outlet as the person from UN Monitoring Group, who compiled the report that led to the allegations leveled against Kenyan officials.

If these allegations about Bryden’s involvement in Jubbaland crisis by supporting few individuals are true, then many people will expect a fresh round of bloody conflict in these region, where people are already tired of war, injustice and humanitarian disasters.

More on Bryden’s history read this link from Wikipedia website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Bryden
 
Wagoshanews Desk, New York - USA

    There are no comments for this entry yet.