Farmaajo courts AU as the West shuts him out

GOOBJOOG NEWS|KINSHASA: Mohamed Farmaajo whose term as President of Somalia expired in February and is currently in office illegally Monday appealed to the African Union to support his extended stay in office after a similar bid was rejected by western donors.

Statements from the President of DRC Felix Tshisekedi and the Foreign Affairs in Mogadishu were laden with confusion lacking clarity on what Farmaajo’s meeting and the DRC president arrived at but the embattled leader made it known what his intention was.

“Today President Farmaajo announced that the FGS “With regards to Somalia’s efforts to hold peaceful, inclusive and timely elections, my government would welcome the role of the AU in facilitating a Somali-led and Somali-owned engagement process that would lead to dialogue,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a tweet.

The DRC president who is also the current African Union chairman alluded to the intervention of the AU but fell short of what the intervention would entail in light of the term extension.

“Advocating African solutions to African problems, the Head of State welcomed the approach of President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed to open up to the AU and to reach out to all Somali forces for a just and lasting peace.”

AU should mobilise external mediation on Somalia’s poll fiasco-Crisis Group

But when Farmaajo spoke, he was categorical; support my bid for two more years in office. “I urge all international partners including the African Union to support this historic timely decision,” Farmaajo said.

“I welcome the African Union to take a leading role in facilitating an election process in which every citizen elects their representatives through free and fair elections. All Somali stakeholders will actively participate in the dialogue on the future of our democracy,” the embattled former leader added.

Senate first deputy speaker Senator Abshir Ahmad rubbished Farmaajo’s claim of AU intervention noting it was a strategy to bring in Ethiopia and Eritrea into the Somali political theatre.

“This is indicative of multi-faced and contradictory politics of ex-pres Mohamed Farmaajo. He accused FMS and opposition of collusion with foreigners, sidelined donors, played neighbors in the name of fake nationalism. Now he wants to bring in Eritrea and Ethiopia in guise of AU,” Senator Ahmad said in a tweet.

The visit to Kinshasa which was Farmaajo’s first port of call to win continental support came barely two days after westerns donors notably the US, EU, UK and the UN made it clear to him that they would not entertain any term extension.

Sources told Goobjoog News Farmaajo will be mounting a whirlwind tour of the continent in the next weeks to shore up support for his illegal extended stay amid boiling tensions in the country especially the capital Mogadishu which has been rocked by continued protests.