Somali opposition leaders accused the federal government of a plan to ink illegal agreement with two international oil companies, terming the move a ‘dangerous’ deal at this time when the country is in transition.

In a letter addressed to President Mohamed Farmaajo, Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble and the leadership of the two Houses, the Council of presidential candidates have warned the government against signing secret agreement with foreign companies, saying the move could pose ‘danger to the future, standing and unity of the Somali Nation’.

“The reported secret agreement the ministry is going to sign is against all the laws and regulations on natural resources that have been approved by the Federal Parliament and agreement between federal government and federal member states,” the letter read in part.

The letter further warned that illegal deals with companies could risk the country’s debt relief process.

“The reported secret agreement also violates the agreement between the federal government of Somalia and the international monetary institutions, especially the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank,” the candidates said “It puts the debt relief process at great risk and will result in Somalia being forced to go back to conditions already fulfilled or the failure of the entire debt process, which is important for the country’s economic growth and its ability to attract investment.”

Wadajir Party leader, Abdirahman Abdishakur said the two companies seeking the deal with the current government are identified as Coastline Exploration Inc and Liberty Petroleum Corporation.

According to multiple sources, late last month, Somali government had finalised oil licensing deal with Coastline Exploration and Liberty Petroleum after Somali minister for Minister Abdirashid Ahmed who was accompanied by Somali Petroleum Authority (SPA) boss Ibrahim Hussein reportedly met officials from Coastline Exploration and Liberty Petroleum in Turkey.