Hiiraan Online
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
HARGEISA (HOL) ----Opposition parties in Somaliland, a breakaway region in northern Somalia protested against one more year extension for president's term by the house of elders, before presidential elections was to be held in the enclave.
Opposition supporters also staged numerous protests, calling then government to back down its decision which they described as 'constitutional coup d'etat'.
Two main opposition parties vowed they would not accept the president's term extension, as troops raided their offices across the region, barring media from covering the political tension.
Abdirahman Mohamed, the chairman for Wadani party told reporters that security forces arrested dozens of opposition members, as the government officials warned opposition parties to stop political challenges in a region often referred as oasis of peace in a country fell apart by civil unrest.
A government spokesman was not immediately available for comment.
In addition, Feisal Ali Warabe, the leader of UCID opposition party urged president Ahmed Silanyo not to accept the extension which he described as a 'humiliation'.
Mr. Warabe declared he would quit politics if the president maintains his support for his term extension.
"It's a dark day for Somaliland, they tainted our country's name." he told reporters on Monday.
Meanwhile, hundreds of protestors gathered in Togdheer region on Monday in support for the opposition parties' political moves.
Hundreds of troops were also deployed across Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland to prevent further protests, as political observers warned current tensions would divide the peaceful region's clans who unlike southern Somalia maintained peaceful co-existence for decades.
The reactions by the opposition parties highlight challenges facing the government led by Ahmed Silanyo as his rival parties previously urged dissolving the two upper houses, accusing them of failing to perform their duties as planned.
Somaliland, a breakaway region in northern Somalia has declared a unilateral independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991, however, its attempts to gain an international recognition hasn't so far accomplished success.