
Mogadishu – UM interviews carried out across Mogadishu of different people found that the allegation that former Prime Minister’s alleged request for Kenya’s assistance to win the next election in return for finding a “sustainable” solution to the maritime dispute has angered most Somalis. The allegation was first made by a Kenyan female Senator Falhado Dekow Iman after the former Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire met with her and other Kenyan-Somali Senators in Nairobi yesterday. The allegation was followed by a video showing Peter Kagwanja who stated that he has been an Adviser to Khaire from 2018. Mr. Kagwanja also happens to be the husband of former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kenya and current Defence Minister, Monica Juma. He admitted this on air during an interview with Kenya’s National TV. He also said he used to come in and out of Mogadishu during his time as an adviser to Khaire.
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“I liked Khaire before but now I think he was working with Kenya and he was getting alot of advise from them,” said Jama Elmi, who is a political science student in Mogadishu. Another student friend who did not want to be named added that he was surprised “why Khaire never spoke about Somalia’s maritime case with Kenya when he was Prime Minister.”
In many ways, Khaire is no different from other Somali opposition leaders who also go to Kenya. But those interviewed felt that he was the only one who made his visit public and promised to find a solution with Kenya on the issue of the maritime dispute.
“How can a former Prime Minister who now wants to be President tell Kenya he will negotiate our sea? Is he crazy?” asked Luul Abdi, a business woman who once supported Khaire. “I think anyone who talks to Kenya about Somalia’s sea we can’t trust.”
“The sea belongs to Somalis. It is our water, our fish, our oil and our future. It is not Khaire’s future and we don’t want to negotiate with Kenya so Khaire can stay there and live with his Kenyan friends if he wants but we will not support someone who will talk to Kenya about our sea. The Court will decide and we will win because it is our sea,” said Amira Mohamed, a small business owner and student of economics. ” I am sad by what Khaire did.”
The revelation that the Foreign Minister of Kenya’s husband Peter Kagwanja was advising the Khaire at the height of the tensions between the two countries raised further suspicions against the former Prime Minister.
“We knew Khaire was arrogant and inexperienced but I can’t believe he was too ignorant to know what taking advise from this Kenyan adviser meant,” said a political and security analysis who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Khaire also had many Kenyan Somalis working in his office so I wonder what they were also doing.”
“Khaire brought a hostile state to the heart of Somalia’s politics and he has proven that he can’t be trusted by any Somali who cares about their sea. The maritime case will be decided by the next administration and Khaire should not even be considered as a Minister if he wants to find sustainable solution on our sea with Kenya. The only sustainable solution is Kenya stop its illegal claim on Somalia’s sea,” said Mohamed Abdirizak Hassan, a political analyst.
All interviewed agreed that the Somali Federal Government must investigate the political and business links between all Presidential candidates and hostile governments like Kenya.