Mohamed Hussein Rooble claims the Ministry of Foreign Affairs delayed his diplomatic passport, affecting his trip to South Africa.
Former Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Rooble has raised allegations against the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for delaying the clearance of his diplomatic passport, preventing his timely travel to South Africa. Speaking to the Somali community in South Africa on Saturday, Rooble shared that he and his delegation submitted a passport application to the Somali Embassy in Kenya, which faced a 20-day delay, causing some members of his delegation to miss the trip.
Rooble vowed to address the issue upon his return to Somalia, stating that he would hold the responsible authorities accountable. “I will be accountable to the head of state when I return to Somalia, and I will take action on the problem we encountered with the Ministry,” he said.
In response, Somali Foreign Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi denied any interference from the government, explaining that the Ministry had sent a letter to Rooble and his delegation on February 1. “We have the letter we sent him and his delegation, and we do not know where his request was rejected. We only heard about it on social media,” Fiqi commented.
Despite the controversy, Rooble was able to travel to South Africa on Thursday using his Swedish passport, as he is a naturalized Swedish citizen. He was accompanied by a delegation that included former Minister of Education Abdullahi Arab, former State Minister for Planning Gaani, and former Banadir regional secretary-general Xiireey, all of whom reportedly traveled on European passports.
The disagreement over the diplomatic passport has sparked discussions on the diplomatic relations and internal political dynamics within Somalia.
