PRESIDENT ABDULLAHI Yusuf of Somalia resigned yesterday following an internal power struggle and intense pressure from regional and western powers who accused him of blocking peace efforts in the conflict-ravaged country.
Yusuf (74), told parliament that a lack of international support had left him unable to establish stability, and that he was handing over power to the parliamentary speaker, Sheikh Aden Madobe.
“As I promised when you elected me on 14th October, 2004, I would stand down if I failed to fulfil my duty, I have decided to return the responsibility you gave me,” he said.
The transitional federal government that President Yusuf, a former warlord, headed was an interim administration backed by the UN, and was meant to prepare the country for elections next year.
Instead, it failed to establish any meaningful impact on the ground, while presiding over one of the most chaotic periods in Somalia’s recent history, culminating in a bloody insurgency led by Islamist militias and occupying Ethiopian troops.
President Yusuf’s resignation was welcomed by diplomats, and is likely to boost peace negotiations under way in Djibouti.
While his lack of concern for civilians killed in counter-insurgency operations led some observers to describe him as a war criminal, he was also opposed to talking to moderate Islamist groups, such as the Alliance for the Re-liberation of Somalia, a key party to the talks.
“Yusuf is the tough guy who knows how to fight,” said Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, the UN special representative for Somalia. “Nobody in government can even take a drink of water without him.” – (Guardian service)