Off the wire
• Kenyan anti-doping body gets China, Norway boost  • Turkey tightens measures to prevent foreign fighters to cross into Syria  • 2nd LD Writethru: Former German President Richard Von Weizsaecker dies at 94  • Lawmaker resigns after basement-digging collapses neighbors' houses  • Smog to hit north, central China  • 1st LD: Egypt court lists Hamas armed wing as terrorist group  • Malta to hold abrogative referendum on Spring hunting in April  • Open Era all-time women's Grand Slam winners  • Africa Focus: African first ladies vow action on maternal health, gender violence  • 3 Frenchmen given suspended jail term for nude photos at Cambodian heritage site  
You are here: 　 Home

Somali lawmakers give PM more days to name cabinet

Xinhua, January 31, 2015 Adjust font size:

Somali Parliament on Saturday gave Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke another ten days to complete the nomination of his cabinet after the elapse of the 14 days he had earlier requested.

The lawmakers, who had engaged in an acrimonious debate, finally agreed to give the PM an extension to name the deputy ministers.

Parliament was expected to cast a vote on the new council of ministers on Saturday, but it emerged that the PM had only named ministers without their deputies.

Earlier this week, Sharmarke named a 20-member council of ministers excluding the president's allies whom parliament had vowed to reject if the PM included them in the list.

Sharmarke in his memorandum to parliament has also noted that he intends to add another five ministers to the new cabinet, making it a total of 25 ministers.

The Inter-Governmental Authority of Development (IGAD), a regional bloc of eastern African nations, had on Friday called on the Somali leadership to fast track the formation of an inclusive government so as to address the critical security and state building tasks.

Out of 230 members present, 139 voted in support of the extension while 47 opposed, with another 44 abstaining the vote. Endi