Jawari put the President on defense over motion-source

It has now emerged Lower House Speaker Mohamed Jawari put President Mohamed Farmaajo on the defence Sunday demanding he declares whether the motion against him is sponsored by the government.

A lawmaker who spoke to Goobjoog News off record said prior to addressing the media Sunday, Jawari sought the President’s audience to know if the motion is government sanctioned even as indications are now clear the majority of the backers of the motion are government ministers.

Jawari has blamed his recent political woes on Prime Minister Hassan Khaire who has not spoken out publicly about the matter. The Speaker demanded Sunday the government withdraws the new security team in the Lower House buildings but the government has since maintained the forces were procedurally deployed by the respective authorities.

President Farmaajo is said to have cut his trip to Qatar Sunday owing to the ongoing political row. The chief of defense forces General Abdiweli Gorod and a delegation have been in the Gulf country since last week and were expected to receive the President Sunday according to sources.

An event to mark PM Khaire’s one year in office set to have taken place yesterday in the city was postponed in what sources said could be as a result of the political situation in the country. Goobjoog News could not independently establish if the event was organized by the Office of the Prime Minister.

Goobjoog News has also learnt the voting formula has become an issue of major debate among MPs ahead of the no confidence motion to be tabled within the week. Jawari told reporters yesterday the motion must be tabled within 10 days’ time noting he had instructed the House Business Committee to schedule a date for the voting.

LOYALTIES AND BETRAYAL

Tied to loyalty and political survival, the vote will be keenly watched by leaders from both sides. Sources have told Goobjoog News some MPs are pushing for voting by show of hands making it easy to determine where loyalties lie. The motion failed to secure a slot in the order paper last week after it emerged 16 MPs had chickened out leaving 91 MPs on the list, one MP shy of the 92 quorum threshold.

According to the House Standing Orders which were amended towards the end of the last session, voting in the House can either be through secret ballot or by show of hands. However, the House is at liberty to choose either option with the support of only 20 MPs.

In the event of the secret ballot, a tie results in collapse of a motion but when voting is done through secret ballot, the speaker can invoke his rights to vote hence breaking the tie.