Opposition to President Farole of Puntland has sparked demonstrations. The oil-producing breakaway region is poised for economic growth with foreign oil companies playing a larger role in influencing politics., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.
SOMALIA: Former Puntland President warns Farole regime against using force in civilian uprising
ABDIRISAK MOHAMED
ON AUGUST 4, 2013
Former President of Puntland State of Somalia, Gen. Adde Musse issued a stern warning to President Abdirahman Farole on Saturday, saying the Puntland leader would “bear the consequences” of using force against the civilians and opposition groups in Puntland.
In response to the allegations of Mr Faroole the former President is responsible for the violent clashes in Qardho, Puntland on 14 July 2013, in which a civilian and three soldiers lost their lives and many others were wounded, Gen. Adde responded:
On Mr. Faroole’s Allegation that he Came from Canada to stoke trouble in Puntland, General Adde responded that the people of Puntland are the best judge to point out who is the trouble maker –the man of peace that I am who, over the 4 years he was in Office, went to great lengths to quickly extinguish any hint of trouble or likely scenario that might lead inter-clan confrontation; who never spared expense to establish peace and harmony in the land and who left behind a happy and relatively prosperous and vibrant society in Puntland or the one who perfected that art of stoking trouble, even arming one clan against the other to get his objective of the classical “divide and rule.
The General pointed out that their records in Office couldn’t be different. Under Mr. Faroole’s stewardship, more than 200 Puntland citizen lost their lives in inter-clan clashes or in politically motivated assassinations, and these include Representatives (parliamentarians). We are not counting here that number who died as a result of the extremist bombings or shootings which never existed under my Presidency. Add to that the high number of citizens that have experienced summary detentions and unlawful imprisonment not because they committed crimes or offences but they held beliefs and political views opposed to Mr. Faroole’s.
Under my leadership there was not a single detention or unlawful imprisonment because of a citizen’s political stance or because he reported or wrote things that I did not agree with, says Gen. Adde
As an afterthought, the General made it clear that everybody in Puntland back in early 2000s knows that, whilst I was working with former President Col. Abdullahi Yusuf to re-establish peace in Puntland and bring people together as a single sharing a lot, Mr. Faroole, a Minister in the president’s cabinet, was strongly opposed to everything we were undertaking. I always work and fight to establish peace and harmony whereas Mr. Faroole always does the opposite.
Allegations
As to the allegations that I was behind the violent clash in Qardho, the former President responded that these are completely fabricated lies. Contrary to the lies Mr. Faroole is pushing, I was in the middle of the crossfire between the heavily armed militia with 25 machine gun mounted vehicles and the residents of Qardho, who were lightly armed. I was there in the danger zone to stop the fighting and I succeeded with the support and co-operation of both Faroole militia and the residents of Qardho. Had it not been my intervention, The death toll would have been much higher.
Loss of life
On the issue of the armed clash that resulted in loss of lives on both sides, the former President but responsibility solely on the shoulders of Mr. Faroole, who is an obstinate and dictatorial individual who never listens to constructive advice and who can never stand to a point of view contrary to his. His favourite response is “I said that” or “That is my decision”, even when his arrogant and dismissive attitude is going to lead to disaster, exactly as happened in Galkaio and in Qardho – would have happened in the rest of Puntland if he didn’t change his mind and come back to square one.
General Adde pointed out that what happened in Qardho was not an isolated incident but followed similar incidents incidents in Iskushuban, Rako, Bender Beila and Hafun, all of Karkar Region as well as in Badhan (Sanaag region) Bur-Salah and Galkaio in Mudug region where there was even a higher loss of lives.
The General added that Faroole is deliberately isolating the incident in Qardho not only to smear my good name but also to divide the opposition to his unrealistic and now doomed multi-party elections that were to take place the following day, 15 July 2013. Only the people of Puntland were fully aware that the wining Party of the multi-party elections that never were would have been Faroole’s Party.
The role of clan elders
General Adde strongly warned of the impending disaster for Puntland if the Traditional ISIMIS (clan elders), in 20 August Meeting shy away from the responsibility that they have surely neglected so far because of Mr. Faroole’s dirty tactics. He cited Faroole’s current project negating the ISIMIS’s (the highest traditional authority that was instrumental in the establishment of Puntland in the first place) authority by rounding corrupt and unprincipled individuals masquerading as traditional ISIMIS (including some of those that were humiliatingly expelled from Magdishu as Bogus Traditional Chiefs) and claiming he has the backing of the people.
In the event that the above scenario becomes a reality, the General made it clear that Puntland will disintegrate mini sub-clan based towns and villages that will be at each other’s throats and the only way avert that Faroole evil plans should scraped.
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