Deni delivers last stroke on Garowe talks, terms FGS antagonistic

By T. Roble

The Federal Government was antagonistic towards any agreement during the Garowe conference leading to a collapse, Puntland president Sai’d Deni has said affirming earlier accusations by Ahmed Madobe and Ahmed Haaf.

Speaking a day after his Jubbaland counterpart Ahmed Madobe lashed out at the Federal Government for sabotaging the talks, Deni chided the Federal Government terming it a ‘reluctant party’ and ‘non-committal’ to any talks in what could wipe out hopes of perceived entente with Mogadishu.

“The talks collapsed because of two reasons,” Deni said in a media briefing. “There was no agreement on how we would cooperate. The Federal Government said it needed more time but the Federal Member States said the matter was urgent and provided for in the Constitution.”

Both Jubbaland’s Madobe and his Galmudug counterpart Haaf scolded the Federal Government of ‘ill-will’ and ‘lack of no interest’ in settling the two-year-long dispute between the two levels of government.

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The second reason for the collapse of the talks hinged on the Elections and Petroleum Bills, Deni said. “The FMS leaders urged for a recall of the two Bills to allow for consultation and our input but the Federal Government was reluctant.”

Madobe told journalists upon arrival in Kismayu over the weekend the Federal Government had ignored calls for review of the two bills but only said, ‘just put it in writing and send it to the Federal Parliament and they will look at it.

COALITION OF THE WILLING

Deni who led South West and HirShabelle in unveiling the ‘Coalition of the Willing’ Sunday in what seemed a new FGS friendly course fired what could be one of his fiercest censure against the government since coming to office early this year.

Deni said the federalism project was ‘staggering’ and that Somalia had ‘become centralised in the last one year of disputes’. This must be corrected by all Somali people, Deni said.

The Puntland leader who hosted the failed talks also accused the Federal Government of ‘denying Galmudug its share of $150,000 during the one year of conflict’.

The announcement Sunday of a joint forum with HirShabelle’s Mohamed Waare and South West’s Abdiazi Lafta-Green seemed to signal to tone down public perception of the Garowe talks and casting aspersions on Madobe and Haaf’s remarks.

However, Deni’s remarks last night laid bare what became a talk shop for one week.