Somalia’s Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire was forcedly removed from his post on Saturday after the majority of parliament members passed a vote of no confidence against him over his failure to pave the way towards fully democratic elections, the speaker of the house confirmed, reported Reuters.
A total of 170 out of 178 parliament members backed the no-confidence motion. President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo immediately endorsed Khaire’s ouster, whom he had appointed as prime minister in February 2017. Notably, Khaire has been in dispute with President Mohamed over the model and the timing of the country’s upcoming elections.
In a press conference on Saturday after the voting, Mohamed Mursal Abdurahman, the speaker, accused the government of Prime Minister Khayre of “ineffectiveness.”
“One hundred and seventy lawmakers favored the motion against the prime minister, and only 8 lawmakers opposed,” the speaker of parliament said. “Therefore, the motion has passed, and we urge Somalia’s president to appoint a new prime minister.”
Prime Minister Khayre’s government has been accused of not working towards the promises he made to the people of Somalia including conducting one man – one vote elections in the country and constituting a national security force for tightening the country’s security.
President Farmajo has accepted the Somalia parliament’s decision as he said he valued and underscored the significance of cooperation between all arms of the government. He has promoted Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohamed Guled to act as the caretaker prime minister for the time being, a statement issued by the president’s office said, citing the need for continuity of government programmes.
“The rift between the government and the legislature is undermining the progress that has been made, and to that end I have decided to consider the decision of the House of Representatives as the foundation of our nationhood,” the president said.
Members of Khayre’s cabinet, however, rejected the parliament’s decision and described it as a political conspiracy against the government.
