Some 165 MPs were present at Parliament Hall today, where speakers expressed their support or opposition to the accountability motion.

The meeting was chaired over by Deputy Speaker Osman Elmi Boqore. Sheikh Adan "Madobe" Mohamed, the Speaker, was on a trip with Prime Minister Gedi in neighboring Bakool region.

MP Salad Ali Jeele, who is also the deputy defense minister in Gedi's Cabinet, said it is "not the right time" for lawmakers to push for accountability with Gedi's government.

MP Mohamed Qanyare, a former Mogadishu warlord, said not only does he support accountability with the government, but he wants Premier Gedi to face a vote-of-confidence motion again.

Parliament was adjourned for the third time since last week and MPs were instructed to reconvene on Thursday.

Parliamentary insiders said some 100 MPs have signed onto a motion calling for accountability with the Gedi government. But because the Prime Minister has many supporters in parliament, introducing the motion has dragged and some sources have suggested that it might eventually crumble.

New governor ceremony

Local officials in Bakool region, northwest of Mogadishu and adjacent to the Ethiopian border, invited federal officials including Prime Minister Gedi to attend the crowning ceremony of Mohamed Abdi, the new governor.

The ceremony in Huddur town was attended by Speaker Madobe, Transportation Minister and former Baidoa warlord Ibrahim Habsade, UN and Italian officials.

Prime Minister Gedi congratulated the people of Bakool region for reaching a consensus and naming a governor for their region. Gedi's government has routinely appointedgovernors from Mogadishu and in some cases locals have militarily resisted such governors.

"The new Bakool administration was elected by you [people of Bakool]," Prime Minister Gedi said, adding that Somalia befriends any party that is willing to help the country develop.

Source: Garowe Online