Somaliland: Cabinet Meeting Postponed Due To Conflicts within the Ruling Party

Hargeisa, Nov 01, 2013 (SDN) -Somaliland’s cabinet has postponed its regular weekly meeting on yesterday due to conflicts within the ruling party’s organizing committee of Kulmiye’s upcoming third convention which is scheduled to kick off on December 25 this year.

Of recent, there have been disputes in the ruling party’s third convention organizing committee as different factions compete to grab the leadership of the organizing committee.

Journalists from various media outlets always go to the presidential palace every Thursday to cover the weekly cabinet meeting, but were informed this time that the meeting had unusually been cancelled.

Officials within the presidential palace have told us that the cancellation came as a directive from president Silanyo due to the ongoing disputes within the ruling party’s third convention organizing committee. The party is in intense preparation mood for the upcoming third convention which will see the election of Kulmiye’s new leadership that would carry the torch to 2015 elections.

The Finance Minister Abdiaziz Mohamed Samale, declared his intention to contest for the party’s chairmanship since March as well as for the 2015 presidential elections.

But minister Samale’s decision to contest for the party chairmanship has caused friction between him and the current chairman of Kulmiye Muse Bihi Abdi.

Minister Samale’s entry into the fray was deemed an apparent attempt to deny long serving deputy and current party leader Mr. Musa Bihi from the top position thus subsequent party presidential candidate in planned 2015 elections.

The chairman of the ruling party Kulmiye  Mr. Muse Bihi Abdi on the other hand saw it as an unwelcome challenge to his leadership and his dream of becoming the party’s candidate for 2015 presidential elections.

The matter was exacerbated by the recent attempt of Samale led faction to grab the leadership of the organizing committee.

SDN Hargeisa