By: Guleid A Maher
HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – Wrangling between the speaker of parliament cum opposition boss for the national party (WADANI) Hon. Abdirahman Abdilahi and his deputy Hon. Bashe Mohamed Farah has intensified.
In a house session today some members of parliament punched each other in house forcing police officers to storm members of parliament punched each other in house forcing police officers to storm in and evict members of the public who were invited to listen to the house proceeding.
It is believed that the police were acting on orders of the first vice-chairman Hon- Bashe Mohamed Farah a member of ruling party KULMIYE, the two opposing motions were brought to the house by members of parliament supporting the two leaders; one group supporting the opposition boss while the other group was supporting the ruling party deputy speaker Hon. Bashe the police entry and removal by force of members of the public resulted in booing by a cross section of the house.
The house agenda concerned a motion that would reduce the number of votes needed for removal of the speaker from power which before was 55 votes and now the new by-law stated that it be changed to 42 votes.
Speaking to the Somali channel of B.B.C the opposition boss of the national party Hon. Abdirahman (Irro)accused the government for master minding his over throw particularly he finger pointed the vice president H.E. Abdirahman (Sayli) for mobilizing the ruling party MPs while in cahoots with some minister held a clandestine meeting in his Hargeisa residence.
On the other hand some parliamentarians supporting the speaker accused the minister in the office of the president Mr. Hirsi Ali Hassan for manipulating the house behind the scenes. In an interview with a local television station (Horn Cable) the presidency minister denied their claims. “I do not go there and by the way the house of assembly is an independent entity and no one can interfere in her affairs”, Mr. Hirsi was quoted.
The minister refuted claims by some opposition MPs from (WADANI) party that he had threatened them. Mr. Hirsi says it was only a political joke between the ruling party Kulmiye and the opposition national party (WADANI). He went on to say he recited a poem of which he did not mention names in his recitation.
