Hiiraan Online
Tuesday, November 24, 2015
MOGADISHU (HOL) - Somalia's prime minister replaced two ministers on Monday as part of a minor cabinet reshuffle that officials say precedes an upcoming larger cabinet reshuffle.
In a statement issued on Monday evening, prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke has replaced Abdirahman Abdi Osman, the trade and industry minister and appointed Abdirashid Mohamed Ahmed to his post.
Mr. Sharmarke has also appointed Mohamed Mursal to become the electricity and water minister, replacing Mohamed Hassan Aden who held the position since early this year.
The reasons behind the ministers' dismissal have not been specified, however, the development comes as the prime minister is expected to carry out a major reshuffle of his cabinet in the coming days with key ministers would be booted out, according to sources.
In the meantime, political analysts say that Mr. Sharmarke is trying to experiment with the idea of having very few ministers after criticism that a large-sized cabinet stretches beyond the impoverished
horn Africa nation's economic capacity.
Mr. Sharmarke's government is struggling to contain a deadly insurgency by the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabab which is fighting his government and the African Union forces in Somalia