Somalia: Mogadishu under lockdown as dignitaries arrive for Hassan Sheikh's big day

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble on Wednesday asked residents of the Somali capital, Mogadishu to remain indoors as part of the stringent security measures, ahead of Thursday's formal inauguration of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Last month, Hassan Sheikh, who served from 2012 to 2022 as the first president of the federal government of Somalia, defeated his successor Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, in an election that attracted international attention given the stage-managed delays mainly orchestrated by the former regime.

Roble, who successfully conducted the election under difficult circumstances, said the capital would remain under lockdown from 10 pm on Wednesday to 5 pm on Thursday, just a few hours after Hassan Sheikh formally takes over power as the 10th president.

This, he noted, will allow security officers to implement protocols without much difficulty given the security challenges bedeviling the Horn of Africa nation. In recent months, Mogadishu has been a major target of Al-Shabaab militants who are keen to topple the government.

Already, various dignitaries from a number of countries around the world have already arrived in Mogadishu for the inauguration. Ethiopia, Kenya, and Bahrain were among the first countries to dispatch their representatives to the country for Hassan Sheikh's big day.

Ismail Omar Guelleh, the president of Djibouti and Egypt's PM arrived in Mogadishu on Thursday.

The exercise will take place in the heavily fortified Afisiyoni tent within the Aden Adde International Airport, where security personnel from the African Union Transition Mission troops [ATMIS] are in charge of security responsibilities. The area hosts several diplomatic missions.

Mogadishu is springing back to life after five years of autocracy, abductions, and general maladministration mainly attributed to Farmajo, who was widely criticized for stifling democracy in the country. Farmajo is expected to grace the occasion.

The streets of Mogadishu are already in full posters and banners of the new president, who is widely acknowledged as the father of federalism in the country. Analysts believe Somalia will make significant progress under Hassan Sheikh's administration.

In his previous address, Hassan Sheikh maintained his priorities are centered around the improvement of the economy which has almost collapsed besides rectifying the security situation in the country. Al-Shabaab militants have made it a norm to attack innocent people.

GAROWE ONLINE