Mogadishu, Somalia (CU)_ Somalia has rejected the appointment of African Union’s special envoy John Mahama, claiming that the country does not trust the former Ghanaian President to mediate its political impasse with Kenya. In a letter addressed to the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, Somalia informed that it will not support Mahama in his new role, owing to his “extensive links” with Kenya.
According to Somalia’s Foreign and International Cooperation Minister Mohamed Abdirazak says since the former Ghanaian leader is closely associated with the leadership of Kenya, he cannot be trusted to be impartial in his role.
“It is indeed surprising that a candidate with extensive links with Kenya’s leadership has been chosen by the AU to facilitate talks on a political impasse partly engineered by those the Kenyan leadership has supported,” the letter read. “Given the politically sensitive nature of the task of a high representative in any case, I am certain you will appreciate the importance of any candidate for such a post to be seen as impartial and without any links to the region.”
The AU named Mahama the High Representative of the African Union for Somalia’s political mediation on Saturday (8 May). In its statement, the AU said he will work with stakeholders of Somalia to reach a compromise towards an all-encompassing resolution to hold Somali elections immediately.
“In fulfilling his mandate, the High Representative will be supported by AMISOM [African Union Mission to Somalia] to ensure that the mediation efforts and the peace support operation work together seamlessly,” the continental body added.
In 2017, election observers for the Commonwealth Observer Mission at the Kenyan polls were in fact led by Mahama. However, he infuriated opposition leaders Nairobi for endorsing the election, which was later overturned by the Supreme Court, to have been “credible and inclusive”. Since then, he has been an unpopular figure in Kenya. Nevertheless, Somalia’s accusations mean that the former Ghanaian leader cannot take up the role of special envoy.
Meanwhile, Somali Prime Minister Hussein Roble has already negotiated with the parties and reached a deal to resume discussions to hold indirect elections, and therefore, Abdirazak is of the view that the African Union’s decision to name a special envoy has been overtaken by the political events in the country. “It is my concern, [that] deploying an envoy in the process now will only confuse the present amicable arrangements and at worse risk the politicisation of the process further than necessary,” the minister wrote.
