Amason Kingi Deletes Tweet Praising Somaliland After Being Called Out By Foreign Affairs PS

• A rivalry played out in public between Senate Speaker Amason Kingi and Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Singo'ei
• Speaker Amason Kingi said he hosted the Somaliland ambassador to Kenya, Mohamed Ahmed Mohamoud, in his Nairobi office
• However, Foreign Affairs PS Korir Singo'ei told Kingi the foreign policy of the Republic is a function of the national government

Dennis Lubanga, a Kenyan journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings more than 10 years of experience covering politics, news, and feature stories across digital and print media in Kenya.

Nairobi: In a dramatic turn of events, Senate Speaker Amason Kingi deleted a post on X where he heaped praise on Somaliland.

This followed a rivalry that played out in public between Kingi and Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Singo'ei, who told off the speaker over a statement he made on his X account about meeting a Somaliland diplomat.

In a post titled "Promoting Ties Between Kenya and Somaliland," Kingi said he met the Somaliland ambassador to Kenya, Mohamed Ahmed Mohamoud, in his office, where the two explored new avenues for collaboration and partnerships between the two governments.

"We deliberated on the need to enhance trade between Kenya and Somaliland by facilitating easy movement of people and commodities between the two countries, which can be highly boosted by allowing direct flights between Nairobi and Hargeisa," Kingi said.

What Amason Kingi assured Mohamed Ahmed Mohamoud

In the now-deleted post, the speaker further said that he had committed to taking up the matter with the relevant arms of government and exploring ways in which Parliament can support such positive engagements.

Following Kingi's remarks, the Foreign Affairs PS joined the conversation by citing Kingi's post.

According to the PS, the foreign policy of the Republic is a function of the national government, and the Parliament's role is to oversee the exercise of foreign relations by the national government.

"It is Kenya's established and unchanging foreign policy consistent with the African Union that only the Federal Republic of Somalia is the recognised state entity. Somaliland, a region within the Federal Republic of Somalia, has a liaison office for commercial purposes in Nairobi. This office is not an embassy," said Singo'ei.

Who's EAC new kid on the block?

In a related story, TUKO.co.ke earlier reported that war-torn Somalia was formally admitted to the East African Community (EAC).

The conflict-weary nation joined Kenya, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania in the bloc.

In a statement shared by State House Kenya, the decision was reached on Friday, November 24, during the 23rd Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State in Arusha, Tanzania.