BARAWE [SMN] – Senior military and police officers of the Africa Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) on Thursday visited AMISOM troops in Barawe, South West State, to assess troop morale, welfare and preparedness in securing the upcoming parliamentary elections.
Led by the AMISOM Deputy Force Commander in charge Support and Logistics, Maj. Gen. Gerbi Kebede Regassa and AMISOM Police Commissioner, AIGP Augustine Magnus Kailie, the officials interacted with the troops protecting the local population and supporting government installations and institutions in the region.
Maj. Gen. Regassa and Police Commissioner Kailie, assessed operational readiness of the troops, election security arrangements, and reviewed co-ordination and joint operations between AMISOM and the Somali Security Forces.
The district also hosts one of the twelve Joint Operations Centres (JOCs) in the country, established to bring together officers from the Somalia Police Force (SPF), the National Intelligence Agency (NISA) and the Somalia National Army (SNA) to safeguard the security, integrity and credibility of the electoral process.
The Joint Operations Centers works in coordination with the National Election Security Taskforce, which is tasked with securing Somalia’s ongoing national elections. The taskforce is chaired by the Somalia Police Force, with support from AMISOM Police.
AMISOM has deployed officers of the Ghana Formed Police Unit and Individual Police Officers to Barawe to enhance election security. Barawe has one voting station and will elect 25 members of the House of the People during elections slated for November.
Others in the delegation included the Chief Military Intelligence Officer (CMIO), Col. Hans Nyange, AMISOM Police Operations Coordinator, DCP Daniel Ali Gwambal, Battle Group 32 Commander, Jonathan Ochom, AMISOM Police Elections Advisor, ACP Anthony Placid, and Lt. Col. Joseph Gwande, the Force Medical Officer (FMO).
