Report of the Secretary-General on Somalia January 2015
“Somalia’s leadership must now work together to form a new cabinet and restore its unity to regain momentum in the political process “
I. Introduction
1. The present report is submitted pursuant to paragraph 15 of Security Council resolution 2158 (2014), in which the Council requested me to keep it informed of the implementation of the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) through written reports delivered every 120 days, beginning on 25 September 2014. The report covers major developments that occurred from 1 September to 31 December 2014.
II. Political and security developments A. Political situation
2. The reporting period was dominated by a serious political crisis in the Federal Government following the announcement on 25 October by Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed of a cabinet reshuffle, reportedly targeting a Minister close to the President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who rejected the changes, asserting that the Prime Minister had not consulted him. On 6 November, parliamentarians supporting President Mohamud submitted a no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister. After some delay owing to disruption caused by parliamentarians who opposed the motion, Parliament reconvened on 2 December to consider the motion, along with several key items on the legislative agenda. On 6 December, Parliament voted on the motion to withdraw confidence in the Prime Minister. Out of 235 parliamentarians present, 153 voted in favour, 80 voted against, and two abstained.
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3. Following departure from office of Prime Minister Ahmed, President Mohamud initiated consultations with political stakeholders and nominated Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke as Prime Minister-designate on 17 December. The nomination was confirmed by Parliament on 24 December. 4. Despite the crisis, there was some progress on key political milestones. On 21 December, the Federal Parliament approved the Boundaries and Federation Commission and the Government budget for 2015. The law on the National Independent Electoral Commission was tabled in Parliament on 3 December. On 9 December, the Speaker established the Parliamentary Oversight Committee, a key body for the constitutional review process.
[blockquote style=”1″]Somalia’s leadership must now work together to form a new cabinet and restore its unity to regain momentum in the political process. There is no time to lose, and the ambitious agenda ahead requires unity, credibility and continuity of leadership. It is incumbent upon them to exercise the leadership expected of them by the long-suffering Somali people[/blockquote]
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