MOGADISHU, July 1 – Puntland State President Said Abdullahi Deni on Tuesday made clear that his administration would reject any federal government role in the region’s security, accusing Mogadishu of weakening Somalia’s federal arrangement and straying from the constitutional framework.
Addressing Independence Day celebrations in Garowe on Tuesday night, Deni said Somalia was still struggling with the political fallout of the collapse of the central government decades ago. He warned that the effort to build a stable federal state through political consensus was now at risk.
He said the administration of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud had violated the provisional constitution, chipped away at federalism and diminished the autonomy of state institutions.
Deni also claimed that national security forces had been deployed in service of political interests, pointing to recent violence in Mogadishu that he said had targeted opposition politicians and traditional elders.
Commenting on reports that the federal government was recruiting security personnel in Puntland State, Deni insisted the region’s security situation was under control and did not call for any force sent from Mogadishu.
“Puntland State will not accept any interference in its security affairs by the federal government,” he said, accusing the central authorities of seeking to destabilize the region and slow its development.
He called on Puntland State residents to stand together and stay alert to what he described as propaganda intended to divide them, saying the region’s security forces remained ready to defend Puntland State and protect Somalia’s federal system.
Deni further accused President Hassan Sheikh of following what he described as a short-sighted political agenda and walking away from the political agreements that formed the basis of Somalia’s federal government.
AXADLETM
