Hiiraan Online
Tuesday February 27, 2018
Members of the Parliamentary Defence Committee during a meeting. HOL
Mogadishu (HOL) - The Ministry of Defence has been directed to draft military pay and allowances regulations following a Tuesday meeting with the Parliamentary Defence Committee.
Since the establishment of the Transitional Federal Government in 2004, the country's armed forces have consistently struggled with paying its soldiers on time.
The Defence Committee on Monday asked the ministry to bring well-drafted army payment bill before the house.
Dahir Amin Jesow, one of the committee members said the body aims to end the payment challenges soldiers are facing.
He pledged that his committee will put pressure on the ministry to complete the regulations in time.
While campaigning for the presidency last year, Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo had pledged to consistently pay salaries and to pay all arrears.
Barely a month after President Farmajo was elected, hundreds of soldiers went on strike in the Somali capital on Sunday, blocking roads and forcing businesses to close to remind him of his promise.
Fiscal mismanagement and the misappropriation of funds has plagued Somalia's military which has routinely been accused of graft by the U.N. and international donors.
The corruption accusations have damaged the confidence of donors.
In mid-December, the U.S. government suspended its food, fuel and stipend aid for most of Somalia's armed forces over corruption concerns.
Many analysts say that the non-payment of soldiers leads to low troop morale within the SNA and directly threatens the war against Al-Shabaab.
The Defence Ministry has announced that they will introduce a biometric database to weed out "ghost-soldiers" and make cash payments directly to soldiers to deter theft.