The political arena has been volatile since Prime Minister hailemariam Dessalegn announced his resigned a couple of weeks ago.
Following his resignation the Council of Ministers imposed a second state of emergency just six months after the 10 month old state emergency was lifted by the parliament, while prominent political figures were also freed over the last few weeks. The ratification of the state of emergency by the legislators was one of the most anticipated incidents of the week.
On the public holiday celebrating the Victory of Adwa the parliament endorsed the proclamation by majority vote of the parliament in which all seats are held by the ruling coalition Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and its regional party allies.
The process of the parliament’s ratification of the state of emergency proclamation has made the choice of the new PM even more highly anticipated. Political commentators and pundits recalled that it was unusual for the parliament not to unanimously approve the measure. They said that the Friday session of the parliament indicates there is difference between members of the ruling coalition which includes four ethnic based parties from Oromia, Amhara, Tigrai and SNNP.
According to Abadula Gemeda, Speaker of the House, 346 members of the parliament supported the state of emergency proclamation, while 88 members stood against the proclamation and a handful of members abstained. Political commentators said that the standing against such crucial proclamation is a new incident observed at the parliament. They remembered that there are some similar incidents which have occurred in the past few months at the parliament. But they said that the proclamations at the parliament and opposed by significant members previously are not in the same league as the state of emergency law. They said that this makes the assignment of the new PM even more difficult. “The incident that occurred on Friday has made the election of the PM more uncertain since things are going against the culture of the ruling front,” they added. “The Oromo Peoples’ Democratic Organization (OPDO) has replaced the prominent and well accepted leader of the party for the sake of attaining the top position in the federal government,” experts said.
OPDO has replaced Lemma Megersa, who served OPDO for two years after replacing Muktar Kedir. He is charismatic and will grab the attention of the public not only in his region but in other parts of the country, according to experts.
Even though Lemma had a lot of support in his party and the public he was replaced by Abiy Ahmed (PhD), another popular leader of OPDO who is also a member of parliament. The power substitution in OPDO directly indicated that the Oromo ethnic party, with the biggest public representation in the country wants to sit at the head of government by replacing the outgoing PM Hailemariam Desalegn. At the same time the Southern People’s Democratic Movement (SPDM) also wants to grab the PM position, according to political commentators. The Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM) the other member of EPRDF that represents the second biggest ethnic group in the country is also expected to compete for the premier post.
No party has officially disclosed that they are interested in the premiership, but Lemma has hinted that was replaced as the leader of his party so that they could have a good chance of obtaining the PM position.
Experts that asked not to be mentioned told Capital that the power struggle for the PM position has become very clear. They said that it is also clear that there is not a common consensus within the political elites of the ruling party. They argued that the latest session at the parliament is a good indication that there is no consensus among the ruling front.
They said that this disagreement will delay the assignment of the new PM for an unspecified period.
“Now the appointment of new Prime Minister will be the big topic in the country’s political situation,” they said.
“I believe one thing that if the ruling collation does not come with a common understanding about the next PM, the appointment of the new PM will take time,” an expert told Capital.
The previous collective understanding in the party has not been seen in the past few months, according to experts. They said that the situation being looked at closely since tension increased between the Oromia and Somali regions when the special forces for the Somali region took forceful action along the border areas of Oromia.
“Now the difference between the different groups is wider than the past which makes the assignment of the new PM more difficult,” they said.
They said that the ruling front stated that it would undertake a council meeting, made up of 45 representatives from each of the 45 ethnically based parties. However, nothing has been heard of the outcome of the meeting or even if it has occurred yet or been postponed. They added that the congress expected to be held this month has been postponed for an undefined period. “This shows that things are uncertain and could change at any time,” they added.

The Addis Ababa Cultural Bureau was apparently shocked by the demolition of the Ras Abebe Aregay house near Aware and has sent documents to the Addis Ababa Police Commission to file charges against the Ethiopian Full Gospel Believers Church for demolishing the home three weeks ago.
The Bureau told Capital that the church negligently demolished the house despite receiving a previous letter notifying them that the property was a historical landmark.
However, a representative from the church said they did not realize the house was a registered historical site. If the church is found guilty, whoever is responsible for making the decision to demolish the house could face 15 years in jail.
The 2,000 sqm brick home was demolished on February 9 with the help of excavator. It took 30 minutes. The protestant church planned to build a G+14 story building to be used for a head office.
The house was used as a residence for the wife of Ras Abebe, Konjit and later sold to a businessman and finally to the church for 1.2 million birr 20 years ago.
An elderly man who resides near the demolished house told Capital that if the Bureau had stopped Muller from demolishing the first home, the second house would not have been destroyed.
Previously Muller Commercial Real Estate demolished another historical home previously belonging to Ras Abebe Aregay in the same area.
Muller wanted to build a housing development. The demolished house was listed among the 440 historical houses in the city’s master plan. It sits on 1,800sqm and was constructed 70 years ago, and was used as a residence for Ras Abebe Aregay and his families.
Muller is currently facing the same charge.
Now only one of the Ras Abebe Aregay homes are left. There are two additional historical Ras Abebe Aregay homes in Arada Sub City of Addis Ababa.
Ras Abebe Aregay had a storied history. He was a leader in the resistance against Italy’s fascist occupation and the grandchild of a general loyal to Menelik II. He also commanded metropolitan police force in Addis Ababa during the 1930’s. He experienced some turbulent years during the attempted occupation but worked to restore Emperor Haile Selassie to the throne where he was given the title of Ras for the second time. He was among the guerilla fighters that escorted the Emperor back into Addis Ababa on Liberation Day, May 5, 1941. He served as Governor General of Shewa and Tigrai, Minister of Defense and Minister of the Interior, Crown Councilor and Senator at various times. He was killed during the Imperial Guard coup attempt of 1960 and was buried at Debre Libanos Monastery.

The Addis Ababa Land Management Bureau plans to reclaim 150,000sqm of fenced land because no construction work has been done on them. The land was given to government institutions and private developers. They are located in 29 areas of the city and will be sent to land banks for future bidding.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs training center was expected to be built in Yeka Sub- City, a planned building by the Social Security Agency in Arada sub city were among the plots that were put in the land bank.
Land given for manufacturing, educational bureaus, and private buildings were also among the reclaimed land plots.
A proclamation which came out in 2011, established time limits for construction on leased land. Consequently there is a limit of 24 months for small projects 36 months for medium sized projects and 48 months for larger construction projects. Small projects can be given a 6 month extension and medium to large construction projects can be extended by one year.
Lease holders can only anticipate receiving the original lease payment with interest, the value of any construction and 5 percent of a lease transfer value should they wish to transfer lease rights before completing construction on the leased land.
Recently the Bureau announced plans to discard the title deeds of 11 fenced plots of land owned by MIDROC Technology Group because they had no construction work done on them in the last ten years. If this is approved by the city and the PM’s office then 54 hectares in Piassa, Mexico, and Kazanchies will be taken by the city.
According to the urban land lease holding proclamation No.80/1993, the lessee can renew the contract if it is not needed for public use. If it is then when the lease is terminated the lessee has six months to hand over the land to the town administration by removing all the property installed on it. If they don’t then the city administration can take whatever is built on the land as well as the land.
Last week Capital reported that the Addis Ababa Land Management Bureau planned to float 101 plots of land in seven sub cities after a six month delay. A new software system, developed by the Addis Ababa Integrated Land Information Center is expected to carry out tenders more transparently.

The Dubai based logistics giant DP World and the government of Ethiopian officially disclosed the Ethiopian 19 percent stake buyout on the Berbera Port, while it has been stated when the government of Somaliland and DP World concluded a management deal last year.
The Dubai company that has been operating a port in Djibouti, has been agreed with the self-proclaimed Somaliland from Somalia to manage the operation of Berbera Port, one of the oldest port in the region.
The company has mainly targeted Ethiopia, the most populated country of the world without a sea port.
To attain the demand the company and Somaliland has decided to offer a stake for Ethiopia on the port, according to experts.
“Berbera would be a good option for the central part of Ethiopia in terms of nearness after the ports in Djibouti and Eritrea, while it is the best for the south eastern part of the country,” experts said.
On the statement issued on March 1, DP World and Ethiopia officially concluded their deals.
“Ethiopia will become a shareholder of the Port of Berbera following the signing of an agreement with DP World and the Somaliland Port Authority in Dubai,” the company statement said.
It has been reported that DP World will hold a 51 percent stake in the project, Somaliland 30 percent and Ethiopia the remaining 19 percent. The government of Ethiopia will also invest in infrastructure to develop the Berbera Corridor as a trade gateway for the inland country. Ethiopia has already connected the highway with Somaliland’s boarder with asphalt road.
The statement added that there are also plans to construct an additional berth at the Port of Berbera, in line with the Berbera master plan, which DP World has already started implementing, while adding new equipment to further improve efficiencies and productivity.
“After a year of serious negotiations, Ethiopia has concluded an agreement with the Somaliland Ports Authority and DP World that will give the government of Ethiopia 19% stake in the joint venture developing the Port of Berbera,” Ahmed Shide, Minister of Transport, said. “The agreement will help Ethiopia secure an additional logistical gateway for its ever increasing import and export trade driven by its growing population and economy,” he added.
Currently the country is mainly using ports in Djibouti, while Berbera has been served as a way to import aid cargos in the past years.
DP World agreed with the government of Somaliland to invest USD 442 million for the expansion of the old port and development of other facilities. The company has also announced that it will establish economic free zone to complement the development of the Port of Berbera.
The horn African self-independent country claimed that it will get recognition from governments, international organization and community.
Somaliland was granted independence on June 26, 1960 from the British colony and immediately recognized by the UN. It then unified with Italy Somaliland, who got independence on July 1, 1960, and formed the then Republic of Somalia.