Senate cites ‘security and technical concerns’ for opting out of joint opening

The Senate has cited ‘security and technical concerns’ as reasons for not participating in today’s joint reopening of the Federal Parliament which was presided over by President Mohamed Farmaajo.

In statement to newsrooms, the Senate said it would announce a future date for resumption of business but did not elaborate on the nature of the concerns.

“The Upper House has decided to postpone the opening of the fourth session which was to take place on September 10, 2018 due to security and technical concerns,” the statement read in part.

The Senate further noted it was concerned by the current political stand-off in the country and noted it would ‘take necessary steps and constructive efforts through constitutional provisions’ to resolve them.

The statement comes amid soaring relations between federal member states and the federal government. The FMS leaders announced Saturday they were ceasing cooperation with the federal government over what they termed as interference, denial of resources and attempts by the executive to destabilize state governments.

Meanwhile President Farmaajo opened the fourth session of the Lower House today where he briefed the House of his government’s efforts in fostering economic recovery and championing peace process in the region. He cited the détente between Eritrea and Djibouti as a remarkable step towards peace and stability in the Horn of Africa.

The Senate also condemned the terror attack at Hodan District headquarters today which claimed at least six lives and injured 16 others. The Senators commiserated with families of those who were affected during the attack.