MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – In an unprecedented joint statement issued Tuesday, three former Somali presidents – Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Abdikasim Salad Hassan, and Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo – called on the incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to immediately halt the sale of public land and provide shelter for thousands of displaced citizens following a wave of recent evictions.
The former leaders sharply criticized the government’s handling of public land transactions, alleging a lack of transparency and disregard for legal procedures. According to the statement, the sales failed to meet essential criteria: the land was not deemed surplus to state requirements, the transactions were not conducted through the National Contracts Agency, and the proceeds were not deposited into state coffers.
The criticism comes amid growing public outcry over the forced evictions in Mogadishu’s Tarabunka area, where tensions erupted into violent clashes between rival factions within the national security forces. One faction reportedly attempted to prevent the demolition of homes and the displacement of longtime residents, while another, allegedly loyal to the President, moved to clear the area for commercial development by wealthy businessmen.
The former presidents expressed their condolences to the families of those killed in the violence and warned of the dangerous precedent being set by what they described as “corruption and public land looting.”
They also called on the Somali business community to resist complicity in the controversial land sales.
The declaration was swiftly welcomed by civil society and political analysts. Prominent academic Professor Afyare Abdi Elmi described the intervention as a “powerful and timely call” in a post on X.
Contact us: info@somaliguardian.com
