Turkey and Qatar urged to halt funding and training Somali troops

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A visibly angry Ahmed Madobe, Jubaland President, has directly dragged Qatar and Turkey into the ongoing political squabbles in Somalia, in a swipe that could change political course in Mogadishu.

For months now, President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo has struggled to contain unprecedented rebellion from federal states, in which Madobe and Puntland leader Said Deni has come out as staunch critics of the federal government.

In a scathing attack targeting Doha and Ankara on Saturday, Madobe warned the two Arabic nations against "funding" the federal government, which has "ulterior" motives against federal states.

Qatar, he insisted, should stop sending money to the federal government under Farmajo, "which is used to harm Somalia" contrary to existing international laws of cooperation.

Turkey was also not spared in his jibes, calling for the cancellation of funding towards Somalia National Army [SNA] troops, which have been linked to "unnecessary onslaught" against federal states.

"We ask Qatar to stop sending money which is now being used to harm the country," he told MPs during the opening of Parliament in Kismayo. "We ask Turkey to stop training forces because there is no [central] government to entrust these forces with."

His remarks coincide with similar calls by Wadajir party leader Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, who also urged Turkey to withdraw from funding SNA since they are used to "fight federal states instead of Al-Shabaab".

Qatar and Turkey have recently projected themselves are "true economic and political" allies of Somalia, initiating a litany of development projects in major towns, although the opposition maintains that their presence "is not genuine".

Turkey has been training SNA troops for years now and it has established a military base in Mogadishu for the same purpose. As such, it has in the process attracted retribution from even the Al-Shabaab militants.

During the December raid in Mogadishu which left at least 90 people dead, Al-Shabaab was quick to confess that "we targeted a Turkish convoy" while tendering apologies to civilians caught up in the mix-up.

Besides Turkey and Qatar, Madobe, who is serving his second term contrary to Farmajo's anticipation, also condemned Ethiopia for "supporting crooks" against the people of Jubaland.

He asked Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to "tame his mannerless officials who are running around" in reference to the Gedo stalemate, which has heightened tensions in Jubaland.

The Ethiopian non-AMISOM troops are said to be aiding FGS in the Gedo region where most of Farmajo's clansmen reside, with Jubaland insisting that "Farmajo is keen to set a parallel administration" to Madobe's disadvantage.

Last week, fighting erupted between SNA troops and Jubaland forces at Balad-Hawo in Gedo, leading to the displacement of thousands of people according to the UN Humanitarian Coordination team.

While allies led by the US and Kenya called for an immediate withdrawal of the SNA troops, Somalia insisted that the ultimate intention was to "flush out" Al-Shabaab militants.

The raids came after Somalia had accused Kenya of interfering with its domestic affairs, in reference to alleged support KDF gives Jubaland forces. Both Farmajo and his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta held a phone call conversation to quell tensions.

But a defiant Madobe, who is cherished within the KDF fraternity, accused Mogadishu administration of sabotage, adding that "there is no difference between FGS and Al-Shabaab".

The Jubaland President also claimed that he had been threatened with "murder" after refusing to take $20 million bribes to leave the office. Farmajo has refused to recognize his 2019 August victory.

Madobe accused Federal Government of Somalia of "behaving like Al-Shabaab" because it brands everyone against it as "a traitor" as the militant group. However, he asked Farmajo to "call dialogue urgently" to end the impasse between FGS and federal states.

Fundamentally, the SNA troops who raided Gedo and Dhusamareb are trained by the Turkish military, which informs the recent outbursts by the opposition against Ankara and Qatar.

In their strategy to call shots in Somalia, both Qatar and Turkey have been running parallel dialogue meetings between the opposition and FGS, although such advances are yet to yield a meaningful outcome, reports indicate.

Somalia is set to hold universal suffrage polls in December, although the strained relationship between FGS and federal states has raised eyebrows among the international partners, who are now calling for "genuine" dialogue.

GAROWE ONLINE