SOMALIA - PM HUSSEIN ATTEMPTS TO OUST MOGADISHU'S

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NAIROBI 001885

SIPDIS

STATE FOR AF/E AND A/S FRAZER

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/31/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL EAID PINS SO
SUBJECT: SOMALIA - PM HUSSEIN ATTEMPTS TO OUST MOGADISHU'S
MAYOR

Classified By: SPECIAL ENVOY JOHN YATES, REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D)

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Summary
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1. (C) Summary: Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein issued a
public recommendation to remove Banaadir governor and
Mogadishu mayor Muhammad Umar Habeb, aka Mohammad Dheere, on
July 29. President Yusuf, who rejected the maneuver as
illegal, told us the Prime Minister didn't consult the
President and said Dheere will remain in office. Our
contacts also tell us Prime Minister Hussein may try to
remove from office intelligence chief Gen. Mohamad Warsame
Farah &Darwish8 and Transitional Federal Government Police
Commissioner Gen. Abdi Awale Qeybdiid, ostensibly to improve
the security situation and government revenue collection in
Mogadishu. This latest rift represents another distraction
from Djibouti accord implementation and progress on
transitional tasks. End summary.

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PM Attempts to Remove Dheere
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2. (C) President Yusuf and the Prime Minister's office
confirm Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, backed by a six of
ten cabinet ministers present, asked the president to remove
governor of Banaadir Region and mayor of Mogadishu, Muhammad
Umar Habeb, aka Mohammad Dheere, on July 29. Dheere is a
close ally of President Yusuf, providing much of his security
in Mogadishu. President Yusuf told us he wasn't consulted,
the Prime Minister's move was illegal, and the governor
remains in office. Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Abdisalam
Adan told SE Yates the Prime Minister requested Dheere's
removal to improve security in Mogadishu. Hundreds of
displaced persons outside Mogadishu cheered the Prime
Minister's call for Dheere's removal, according to media.
Our contacts tell us Prime Minister Hussein also soon may
request that the president sack Director of National Security
Service Gen. Mohamad Warsame Farah "Darwish" and TFG Police
Commissioner Gen. Abdi Awale Qeybdiid.

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PM Concerned About Longevity?
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3. (SBU) By advocating for the dismissal of the three
officials most Somalia watchers view as responsible for
Mogadishu's insecurity, the Prime Minister may be trying to
bolster his standing with Parliament and the public;
certainly with the Hawiye constituency in Mogadishu.
According to the Prime Minister's staff, Parliament might
condone the Prime Minister Hussein's move as an effort to
improve security in Mogadishu, repair the business climate,
and increase revenue collection from the Port of Mogadishu,
long rumored a source of Dheere's wealth and power.
Nonetheless, reports indicate a group of MPs still will table
the recently-rumored vote of no confidence against Prime
Minister Hussein. The Prime Minister's staff believes the
vote will fail.


4. (C) Concerned that the widening split between the Prime
Minister and President Yusuf may further weaken the TFG,
Ethiopia is counseling dialogue, according to Deputy Prime
Minister Ahmed Abdisalam Aden. To diffuse the situation, the
Prime Minister's office suggested to us that Ethiopia
encourage Yusuf to appoint Dheere the governor of Upper
Shabeelle, a position he held in the past. They also floated
naming Dheere to the cabinet, or Council of Ministers, under
new rules that ministers can come from outside parliament.


5. (U) President Yusuf appointed Dheere Mogadishu's mayor
and Banaadir's governor on April 26, 2007. Lately, Dheere
had reportedly clashed with district leaders, and supposedly
lost some support among his fellow Hawiye/Abgal elders and
business leaders in Mogadishu. Dheere was a member of the
Somali Reconciliation and Restoration Council and among the
Mogadishu warlords who formed the Alliance for the
Restoration of Peace and Counter-Terrorism to counter the
Islamic courts, growing influence in the capital.


NAIROBI 00001885 002 OF 002


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Comment
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6. (C) Comment: President Yusuf emphasized that the Prime
Minister did not follow procedure. Dheere was nominated by
former Prime Minister Gedi, but appointed by Yusuf's
presidential decree. The president must approve his removal.
Furthermore, DPM Ahmed Abdasalam told Special Envoy Yates
that only six of the 10 cabinet ministers present, out of a
total of 15 ministers, voted for the ouster; two abstained
and two opposed. Nonetheless, his attempt to get Dheere out
of Mogadishu could improve the PM's popularity in Parliament
and with the city's long-suffering citizens. However, it
might not be enough to counter the growing movement within
Baidoa for a no-confidence motion.


7. (C) Comment, continued: This rift in the TFG is an
unhelpful distraction from implementing the Djibouti
Agreement and moving forward on important transition tasks.
According to his staff, Prime Minister Hussein has not given
up trying to remove Dheere. Cabinet may meet again on the
issue and seek legal advice. Ethiopia could help defuse the
situation by encouraging President Yusuf to move Dheere out
of Mogadishu, or finding a new position for him in the TFG.
Yusuf, however, wants and probably needs Dheere's militia for
protection at Villa Somalia. End comment.
SLUTZ