Puntland leader accused of blocking several development projects in Puntland
Source: Hiiraan Online, Saturday April 6, 2024
Mogadishu (HOL) – Somalia’s Deputy Minister of Finance, Abdiqafar Hassan Hange, has accused the leader of Puntland, Said Deni, of blocking many projects that would have created jobs and other opportunities for the Puntland people.
Speaking in Mogadishu on Friday, Minister Hange emphasized that dozens of projects costing hundreds of millions of dollars are on the table, awaiting Puntland’s signature.
The pending projects include the national teachers’ salary project, the Damal Health project, the Barwaaqo project (formerly Biyole), the budget subsidy project, and the Energy and Electricity project, according to the minister.
“Deni wants to starve the people of Puntland and make them unemployed, and they are not allowed to think, which are the hallmarks of a dictator,” said Abdiqafar Haange.
He also stated that Puntland leader Said Deni is conflating his political conflict with the federal government and development projects for his state.
In May 2023, Deputy Finance Minister Abdiqafar Hassan Hange stated that Deni’s opposition to the federal government stemmed from his unsuccessful bid to become Prime Minister.
Last year, 2022, Deni publicly supported Mohamud during the climactic final round of the national presidential elections, resulting in Mohamud defeating the incumbent President, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo. At that time, political analysts widely anticipated Mohamud would select Deni or one of his close associates for the Prime Minister’s position, but this expectation did not materialize.
However, last week, the oil-rich, semiautonomous region of Puntland said it would operate as a state that’s independent of Somalia until changes to the adopted Somali constitution are approved via a popular referendum.
Puntland is a territory of about 4.9 million people in northeastern Somalia. In January, regional lawmakers reelected Said Abdullahi Deni as the area’s leader for another five years.