Two ministers in the Federal Government of Somalia, who are also members of the Lower House of Parliament from Puntland, have announced their resignations from their positions in the government, citing disagreements over constitutional amendments and the way the country’s governance is being run.
One of the ministers who resigned, the former Minister of State for Labor and Social Affairs of the Somali government, Aynaashe Yusuf Hussein, said his decision came after he saw the way the Somali government was being run, and how, as he put it, the agreed constitution was being played with.
He accused the leadership of the federal government of wanting to change the country’s constitution to “one that is ruled by one person”, which he described as a threat to the unity and solidarity of the Somali people.
The resigned minister also said that the rights of the members of parliament from Puntland had been violated, noting that they were prevented from fulfilling their constitutional duties and were not allowed to travel to their constituencies.
“The people of Puntland have given me the confidence to sit on this seat. I cannot be part of anything that harms them and their government,” the minister said, announcing his formal resignation as State Minister of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.
For his part, MP Ismail Buraale, who was the State Minister of the Ministry of Petroleum in the Federal Government, also confirmed his resignation.
Ismail Buraale said he was clearly opposed to the process of amending and completing the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Somalia, describing it as an “incomplete” process that requires consultation and national agreement.
So far, there has been no official statement from the Presidency or the Prime Minister’s Office regarding the resignations of the ministers and their accusations against the government leadership.
However, the MPs elected from the Puntland regions have split into two factions, one supporting the Federal Government and the other Puntland, with some supporting the constitutional amendment and the other opposing the move.
