Yemeni president rejects Aden governor’s resignation

By Gulsen Topcu and Shukri Hussein

SANAA/ADEN

Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi has refused to accept the resignation of Aden Governor Abdulaziz al-Muflehi, which the latter tendered on Thursday, according to a source close to the presidency.

“President Hadi has rejected the governor’s resignation,” the source, speaking anonymously due to restrictions on speaking to media, told Anadolu Agency on Friday.

“After the president returns from abroad, he will summon Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr, along with the governor, to discuss means of achieving security, stability and development in Aden,” the source added.

On Thursday, al-Muflehi, governor of Yemen's southern Aden province, tendered his resignation, describing Aden city -- which currently serves as the country’s interim capital -- as a "bastion” of state corruption.

In his resignation letter, which he reportedly sent to President Hadi, al-Muflehi apologized to the people of Aden, saying he had faced “enormous difficulties” in carrying out his gubernatorial responsibilities.

He also voiced regret over what he described as a “recent deterioration” of basic services in Aden, including power shortages and skyrocketing food prices, which he went on to attribute to the “corruption of the Yemeni government".

In his letter, al-Muflehi directly accused the prime minister of engaging in corrupt practices.

"I found myself at war with a bastion of corruption, with trained cadres… led by Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr," the governor said.

In April, Hadi dismissed former Aden Governor Aidaroos al-Zubaidi, replacing him with al-Muflehi.

Yemen has been dogged by chaos since 2014, when the Shia Houthi militia overran vast swathes of the country, including capital Sanaa, forcing Hadi’s embattled government to set up an interim capital in Aden.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and shoring up Hadi’s pro-Saudi government.

According to UN officials, more than 10,000 people have been killed in the conflict to date.