Somali president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud arrived in Beledweyne city amid lingering standoff over the state formation process for middle Shabelle and Hiiraan regions in central Somalia.
The president and his entourage received a warm welcome at the city’s airstrip from interior minister Abdirahman Odawa, federal lawmakers and Hiiraan regional administration officials.
According to the sources, president Mohamud went to Beledweyne to add his weight to the ongoing interior minister’s spearheaded efforts to overcome the challenges stalled Jowhar meeting.
The traditional elders of Hiiraan region boycotted the welcome the visiting president at the airport, a sign that the disagreement between the federal government and elders over Jowhar conference has reached its peak.
Somali PM Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke has also paid similar visit to Beledweyne this week, in an attempt to bringing Hiiraan elders back to the inter-regional federal state formation conference in Jowhar city.
