East Africa Energy Forum
Wednesday, September 21, 2016
The East African Energy Forum (EAEF) has announced today that it will seek corruption trials in relevant Somali courts against Somali leaders under whose watch the controversial 2009 EEZ MOU with Kenya was signed.
The group said it views the 2009 MOU signing as the catalyst event that opened the door for Kenya to pursue the theft of Somali waters through misinformation and coercion.
EAEF first raised alarm in 2012 over the increased maneuvering by the Kenyan government in its effort to convince Somali politicians to relinquish control of the waters before a permanent government was put in place. EAEF applied significant pressure on foreign oil companies and embassies that were negotiating with Kenya on purchasing offshore oil blocks that were in Somali territory.
"As Somalis we cannot allow those that jeopardized our country's territorial integrity to not answer to their betrayal. We would not be in the international court today had these politicians upheld the trust the Somali nation vested in them. We will pursue all available legal avenues in Somalia to bring those participants in this fiasco to justice" said Abdillahi Mohamud the EAEF's director.
The EAEF has noted that it plans to soon bring forth corruption trials against the 2009 MOU Somali signatories in local courts.
The group is also investigating whether or not signing incentives were provided by Kenya to the Somali politicians involved in the 2009 MOU. The EAEF is demanding that those Somali politicians that were involved in the 2009 MOU signing be removed from contention in the upcoming elections.
"We are perplexed as to how those who attempted in 2009 to sign away Somali territory that was defended by our forefathers, can today continue to seek public positions in Somalia. This level of betrayal was a red line for all patriotic Somalis. Rather than re-elect them to public office, the EAEF along with its Somali partners will aim to bring them to face justice." said Said Mohamed, EAEF's legal director.