Mogadishu mayor tries to stop anti-Farmajo protests

With the exception of the security minister Abdullahi Mohamed Nur who is a close ally to Roble, heads of security agencies – police and intelligence as well as the military, are loyal to the term-ended president.

News Keydmedia Online
11 January 2022

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The mayor of Mogadishu Omar Filish said no protest could be held in the capital without consent from his office and security agencies, in what appears to be a decision aimed to stop a planned opposition rally.

The announcement comes as preparations were underway in recent days for a demonstration against the outgoing president Mohamed Farrmajo, which is scheduled to take place on Thursday this week.

Opposition leaders in the capital have called for a protest to condemn the December 27 coup attempt against Somali PM Mohmed Hussein Roble and Farmajo's wide interference in the electoral process.

The official statement from Mogadishu mayor, which is to deny fundamental citizens rights of peaceful demonstrations and usurp the exclusive MoIS powers, is yet another attempt to undermine the rule of law by the disgraced president Farmaajo," said Hussein Sheikh Ali, a former presidential advisor.

The security ministry has stopped a rally in support of Farmajo last week, signaling a growing political battle between Farmajo and the prime minister, who are at loggerheads over the control of the country.

With the exception of the security minister Abdullahi Mohamed Nur who is a close ally to Roble, heads of security agencies – police and intelligence as well as the military, are loyal to the term-ended president.

Since last year, Mogadishu has become the scene of a political battle between Somalia's top leaders living together in the presidential palace [Villa Somalia], where rival troops duck defensive barracks.

The international community has called on the competing leaders to refrain from inflammatory rhetoric that could lead to fighting in the country's capital, which has been a victim of Al-Shabaab bombings.

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