President, Dahir Rayale Kahin

Hargeysa, Somaliland, October 14, 2006 (SL Times) – Somaliland President, Dahir Rayale Kahin, issued a press statement on Tuesday for the creation of a new ministerial committee to oversee the current standoff between his government, the parliament and the political opposition parties, KULMIYE and UCID.

The new ministerial committee the statement said will be comprised of nine ministers chaired by the minister of cabinet and two chambers of parliament affairs, Mr. Abdi Hassan Buni.

The presidential statement was read out to the local press by the presidential spokesperson, Mr. Abdi Idris Duale. The statement said; ‘The president of Somaliland Republic, His Excellency Dahir Rayale Kahin from as today has named a new ministerial committee charged to look into ways and means in resolving the current standoff existing between the government, the lower house of parliament and the opposition parties’.

The president has requested in his press statement that the two houses of parliament and the opposition parties to form likewise from their respective institutions committees delegated to liaise with this newly formed presidential ministerial committee in resolving the current standoff between the government, the lower house of parliament and the opposition.

The president’s press statements made clear to his new ministerial committee its prime and sole objective being to bridge closer the executive government, lower house of parliament and the opposition and establish a firm and concrete cooperation of understanding between them.

The presidential press statement said, ‘the need to face a common enemy has never been greater in these times, I therefore declare this new ministerial committee starts working immediately in finding a resolve with the lower house of parliament and thereafter once accomplished will start working with the opposition, i.e., in putting our differences away so that we can face our enemy with a single and unifying voice.’

The president’s press statement, in the following day received a cautious welcome by the two national opposition parties, KULMIYE and UCID. Press statements issued by both parties in their headquarters in Hargeysa gave a cautious approach and said ‘on many occasions the president has made similar appeals and embarked on such committees charged to bring the government, the opposition and parliament closer together, but as always such committees end up on just the press papers they were printed on and nothing more’.

Source : Somaliland Times