According to the Khat dealers, the senior official gets money from them forcefully and they accused of the Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke of being aware of that extortion and receiving his share of it.

An 8-member committee acting as middlemen collects the money for the finance ministry from the business people were established in Mogadishu including Chairman Qooje Mohamud Keyliye,who hails from Habargidir sub-clan of Sa'ad, Deputy Chairman Abdullahi Afrah Siyad [Hawadle tribe], Mohamed Isman Arif or Afder [Murole tribe], Mursal Mohamed Fuji [Sa'ad, Habargidir], Salad Mohamed Garad or Salaad Jugjug [Sa'ad Habargidir], Abdinur Mohamed Kadiye [Sa'ad, Habargidir], Abdi Manaan Abdullahi Sofe [Sa'ad, Habargidir], Korane Isman Hima [Sa'ad, habargidir].

"The so-called 8-member committee eats the extortion with the deputy finance minister, who hails from [Wa'asle] Abgal sub-clan of Hawiye and he is also the owner of Hotel City Palace and Beach View," said an entrepreneur, who contacted Waagacusub Media and asked not to be named.

"Each member of the 8-committee used to get two and a half dollar from every branch of the imported bags of Khat, but now it became three and a half dollar it is a big tax increase," said an official for the department of taxation and finance in the Mogadishu airport.    

Muhyadin Hassan Juris, the manager of the taxation , who hails from Abgal, set up his checkpoint to get up to 7,000 U.S dollar a day from Khat dealers. The Mayor of the Mogadishu Yusuf Hussein Jimale receives his share of the money, according to an official in the Ministry of Finance. 

Despite extortion, the deputy Finance Minister asked the Khat dealers to donate $600,000 to the people affected by the droughts when there is no longer drought in Somalia.However, the entrepreneurs that rejected to pay the money and argued that there was no drought to be donated were threatened with blocking their khat inside Mogadishu so that the sun will damage it. 

After Waagacusub Media launched an investigation it obtained that the deputy minister and Mayor of Mogadishu receive their shares through the service of individuals: Mohamed Moalid [Abgal tribe], Abdiqani [Majeerteen tribe], Weji [Abgal, Isman tribe]. Mohamed Moalid and Weji used to work in the Hotel City Palace.  

The Minister of Trade, Mr. Fargeto, who hails from Rahanweyn clan gets 30,000 U.S dollar from the entrepreneurs and he threatened them if they don't pay the extortion that he would bring in more planes carrying dumping cheap Khat in Mogadishu. 

"Mohamed Moalid gets 5,00 each plane every day because the deputy finance minister ordered them to give him or he will restrict their business if they don't.(Every day 15 planes carrying Khat lands at the Mogadishu airport that mean Mr. Moalid makes 7,000 U.S dollar in this way). Mr. Moalid is not officially in the ministry and built many houses in Mogadishu but he used to run a small business in Nairobi, Kenya," said an official in the Ministry who asked not to be named. 

By Dahir Alasow

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