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SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/E AND A/S CARSON

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/15/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM EAID PTER SO
SUBJECT: SOMALIA -SOMALILAND PRESIDENT STRONG-ARMS
OPPOSITION CHAIRMAN SILANYO INTO NAMING NEW NEC
COMMISSIONER

Classified By: Counselor for Somalia Affairs Bob Patterson for reasons
1.4(b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: Somaliland President Riyale on October 19
forwarded the seven National Electoral Commission nominees
to the Guurti, signaling both forward momentum toward
elections and Riyale's ability to manipulate the process.
Riyale submitted the names of his nominees only after the
Kulmiye, UCID, and Guurti Chairmen accepted his rejection
of their initial NEC nominees and named new candidates.
Silanyo, during an October 19 telecon with Somalia Unit
PolOff opined that Riyale is trying to sabotage elections.
Silanyo said he and the Guurti chairman agreed to change
their nominees because they did not want to waste time but
that Riyale's actions showed that the President will do
whatever it takes to retain power. We think the parties
ability to move beyond the NEC issues is a positive
development and are encouraging all parties to remain
flexible during the election process. However, Riyale is
likely to attempt to manipulate the process at every stage.
Moving forward, we will strongly urge Riyale to take the
lead in honoring the spirit of the Six Point Agreement and
the integrity of the election process. End Summary.


2. (C) Somaliland President Riyale on October 19 forwarded
the seven NEC nominees, including those he had accepted from
the opposition parties, to the Guurti, signaling both
forward momentum toward elections and Riyale's ability to
manipulate the process. Riyale submitted the names of his
three nominees only after the Kulmiye, UCID, and Guurti
Chairmen
accepted his rejection of their initial NEC nominees and
named new candidates. (Note: Somaliland electoral law gives
the parliament, not the President, the authority to
consider NEC nominees. However, UCID chairman Faisal Ali
Warabe on October 14 told us he was encouraging Kulmiye
chairman Silanyo to accept Riyale's rejection, as Faisal
had done, in the interest of forward momentum on the
election process. Riyale, in a likely attempt to stall
naming his own nominees and in an effort to seek a NEC
composition he found more agreeable, rejected the first two
opposition party nominations for the NEC on technical
grounds. Riyale complained that the UCID nominee had served
on the previous NEC and that the Kulmiye nominee was a
party board member. In addition, Riyale rejected one of the
Guurti's nominees based on dubious accusations that the
nominee had once been charged with a crime (ref a). End
Note.) Riyale submitted the following list of nominees to
the Guurti:

UDUB Nominees:
-- Mohamed Ahmed Hersi Gelle
-- Isse Yusuf Haji Mohamed
-- Farah Abiib Aden
Gurrti Nominees:
-- Raabbi Sharif Abdi Mohamed
-- Abdirahman Mohamed Ismail
KULMIYE Nominee:
-- Ali-Khadar Hassan Osman
UCID Nominee:
-- Abdifatah Ibrahim Hassan


3. (C) Silanyo, during an October 19 telecon with Somalia
Unit PolOff opined that Riyale is trying to sabotage
elections. Silanyo said he and the Guurti chairman agreed
to change their nominees to the NEC because they did not
want to waste time but that Riyale's actions showed that
the President will do whatever it takes to retain power.
Silanyo angrily recounted the fact that only the parliament
has the right to reject NEC nominees. He said he and the
Guurti chairman argued for many hours over whether or not,
in reaction to Riyale's demands, to put forward new names
and finally agreed to do so in order to move the election
process to the next step. Silanyo asked PolOff to ensure
strong messages are passed to Riyale in order to prevent
the President from manipulating future steps in electoral
process.


4. (C) Comment: We think the parties' ability to move
beyond the NEC issues is a positive development and are
encouraging all stakeholders to remain flexible during the

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election process. However, we also think Riyale is likely
to attempt to manipulate the process at every stage. Moving
forward, we will strongly urge Riyale to take the lead in
honoring the spirit of the Six Point Agreement and the
integrity of the election process. End Comment.

RANNEBERGER