By: Yumoha Pasha
HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – The auditor has been cautioned against detaining civil servants with proof of crimes.
The Hargeisa regional court has released the detained Director of Adm/finance at the national TV station Mr. Hasan Mahmoud Mohamed after the auditor general failed to provide any evidence pertaining to his alleged crime.
The director who had been detained on alleged malpractices at the Somaliland national Television-SLNTV where he has held the post since 2006 was freed from CID custody after the auditor general Mahmoud Aw Abdi failed to comply with a court order commanding him to produce the evidence within four days.
The Auditor general’s office which had promised the court that it will present its evidence on Saturday again asked the court to allow it submit the same on Sunday. This request was granted to the AG who again failed to do so thus the release of the director who has been in custody since Tuesday last week.
It is yet to be ascertained if the auditor general intends to pursue the case further having brought embarrassment on an office that is mistrusted by the public due to accusations it makes against some select civil servants and fail to prove allegations.
At the same time the arrest and subsequent detention of TV station Administrator by the CID on orders of the Auditor General on corruption charges is not the only repercussions of the ongoing investigations by government financial watchdog.
Other victims include the SLNTV director Mr. Ahmed Suleiman Duhul and his representative in the United Kingdom Mr. Khadar Ali Gaas who were suspended from their posts and duties by the information minister Hon Abdi Yusuf Duale ‘Boobe’ who appointed the TV’s Director of programming as acting Station manager.
While it is not clear about the fate of the released finance director the fate of his other two colleagues is under review following their reconciliation with the information minister Hon Boobe.
The outcome of this saga as it pertained to the detention of Mr. Hasan was as anticipated by most Somalilanders who have come to view the Auditor General as an incompetent nincompoop not worthy of his current post.
