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UNCLAS NAIROBI 000046 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/E AND A/S FRAZER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PINR SOCI KDEM SO
SUBJECT: SOMALIA - PUNTLAND ELECTS PRESIDENT IN PEACEFUL 
ELECTION 
 
REF: NAIROBI 40 
 
¶1. (U) Summary.  Abdirahman Mohamed Faroole secured 49 or 66 
votes from Parliament on January 8, and was elected as 
Puntland's next President.  The election was reportedly fair 
and free of major scandals.  The election of Faroole, who was 
not among Abdullahi Yusuf's chosen candidates, represents a 
diminishing of Yusuf's influence in Puntland and, some say, 
in Somali politics overall.  End summary. 
 
--------------- 
Faroole Elected 
--------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Abdirahman Mohamed Faroole, an Australian citizen who 
is from the Darod/Kabalah/Harti/Majerteen/Mohamud Saleebaan 
clan, won 49 of 66 votes in the January 8 Puntland 
presidential election.  Faroole had previously been involved 
in Somalia and Puntland politics, including a stint as 
Puntland Finance Minister when Abdullahi Yusuf was Puntland 
President, but had reportedly had a falling-out with Yusuf 
and went to Australia for some time.  He returned to Puntland 
early in 2008 to run for President.  Citizens of Garowe, 
Faroole's hometown, reportedly felt it was "their turn," 
since the previous two Presidents, Yusuf and Hersi, came from 
rival Puntland urban centers of Galkayo and Bossaso. 
 
¶3. (U) Shortly after Faroole's election, Abdisamad Ali Shire 
was elected Vice President.  Shire is from the 
Harti/Dolbahante clan, as was the previous vice President. 
He reportedly also was not Yusuf's preferred choice. 
 
¶4. (U) The election was reportedly free of major scandals, 
and we have received no reports of violence.  Reports 
indicate that reaction among Puntlanders has been generally 
positive. While the conflict in Sool and Sanaag regions was a 
plank in the platform of all of the candidates, there is no 
indication that the outcome of this election will intensify 
the border dispute with Somaliland. 
 
------------------------------- 
Stark Contrast to the Incumbent 
------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) Contacts also expressed optimism that Faroole's 
economic background, especially his stint as Finance 
Minister, could mean more attention to Puntland's struggling 
economy. 
 
--------------------- 
Yusuf Allies Rebuffed 
--------------------- 
 
¶6. (U) Recently-resigned Transitional Federal Government 
(TFG) President Abdullahi Yusuf had returned to Puntland to 
"oversee" the election.  While he had declared neutrality in 
the race, many speculated that he had supported certain 
candidates, none of whom won either the President or Vice 
President slot.  Observers note that Yusuf's diminished 
influence in Puntland - one went so far as to declare an 
"anti-Yusuf climate" - may well be a positive development. 
In addition, contacts say Yusuf's apparent lack of influence 
in Puntland underlines his lessened influence in Somalia as a 
whole, and could be he is less well positioned to disrupt the 
Djibouti Process, should he want to do so. 
RANNEBERGER