Somalia President Hassan
Sheikh Mohamoud on Wednesday appointed Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke as the
country’s new Prime Minister, becoming the third Premier to serve under the
President.
The move comes two weeks after former
Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed was voted out of office by the Federal
Parliament in a vote of no confidence, following a political wrangle between
him and the President on cabinet reshuffling.
Omar Abdirashid, 54, was the former Prime Minister of
the Transitional Federal government from 2009 to 2010 and currently was serving
as Somalia’s ambassador to the United States, becoming the first envoy in 24
years to be named to the US.
He was forced to
resign from Office after a dispute with the Former President Sharif Sheikh
Ahmed.
The appointment of
the new Prime Minister was announced in a ceremony held in the Mogadishu state
house, attended by the country’s top officials and members of the Parliament.
‘’ I will focus on
bringing back stability, security, and prosperity to all Somali people,’’ he
said in a Press Conference.
Born in 1960,
Sharmarke left Somalia to study political science and economy in at
Canada’s Carlton University. He’s a dual Somali and Canadian citizen.
Sharmarke’s father,
Abdirashid Ali, was Somalia’s second president since independence. He was
assassinated in 1969, an event that introduced a 20-year-long military
dictatorship.
Mr Sharmarke has 30
days to appoint a new cabinet, which will have to be approved by parliament.
However, President
Mohamud hopes the appointment of Omar Abdirashid will bring weeks of political
uncertainties to an end and foster the government’s 2016 vision which is mainly
democratic and peaceful elections, which many analysts believe that it won’t be
implemented due to political circumstances.
Abdi Omar Bile
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