The Council of Presidential Candidates (CPC) has welcomed the dismissal of Somalia’s national intelligence and security agency (NISA), Fahad Yassin over the death of over the death of Ikran Tahlil Farah who worked with NISA.
Ms. Farah abducted June 26 near her home in Mogadishu’s Abdulaziz district, which is close to the agency’s headquarters.
Her disappearance raised a storm with her family constantly asking the government to explain her disappearance or produce her. Politicians also picked up the issue and made it a campaign subject.
Late last week, NISA announced that Ikran was killed by al-Shabaab militants, a move dismissed by the group militant.
In a statement, the CPC which brings together 14 presidential candidates among them two former presidents termed the suspension of Yassin as as an affront to justice for Ikran’s family and an effort to ‘to undermine the security of the country and the elections.
The council opposed president Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo’s statement reinstating Yassin as the head of the country’s spy agency.
Late Sunday, Prime minister Roble replaced Yassin with former police commissioner, Bashir Mohamed Gobe as the interim Director General of the National Security and Intelligence Agency (NISA).
The dismissal was nullified by Farmaajo who asked Yassin to remain in office.
“The Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Mr. Fahad Yassin Haji Dahir, is instructed to continue to lead the National Security and Intelligence Agency, in accordance with the Constitution and the Presidential Decree.
Farmaajo instructed NISA to present the National Security Council (NSC) with its report at the next meeting. The President did not give a specific date on when that meeting would be held. He also directed PM to continue managing the upcoming elections.
“The President of the Federal Republic of Somalia instructs Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble and the Council of Ministers to fulfill their responsibility to complete the electoral process effectively,” the statement said.
