Mareb Governor : My tribesmen will not keep silent if accept the decree

By Nasser Arrabyee,19/04/2012

The  sacked governor of Mareb Naji Al Zayedi said he is not refusing the presidential decree of President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi who appointed a new governor for Mareb earlier this month.

He said Marb is very special province where gas, electricity, and oil pipelines can  be damaged by any angry tribesmen.

" I would like to cooperate with his excellency President Hadi but the decree would not be in the interest of stability and security of Mareb," said Al Zayedi in an interview with Yemen Observer and 'Nasser Arrabyee' website.

Al Zayedi was sacked earlier this month and replaced by a tribal leader from Mareb, Sultan Al Eradah, but handover has not taken place  between the new and the old governor.

Al Zayedi survived many assassination attempts this year and last year and he accused the Islamist party, Islah, in the province of Mareb, of masterminding the assassination attempts. 

" The decree came in the advantage of those who assaulted me many times, do they want us to do same things,  we are ready and able to do the same assaults against those who are behind the decree," he said " but we still do not want to build not to destroy."

"My tribe and my people will not keep silent even if I accepted the decree and handed over the power to new governor who is my friend and respect him," he said as points to tens of tribesmen sitting in his big room in his luxurious house in the capital Sanaa on Monday April 16, 2012.

" I told the new governor over phone, at least  their will be road blocks for 14 months,  the same period during which  we suffered from road blocks from tribesmen who were against us," Al Zayedi said. 

Al Zayedi is from Jehm tribe and the newly appointed governor Sultan Al Eradah is from Abeidah tribe.

Al Zayedi said the solution is that all tribal leaders of Mareb should meet somewhere in Sanaa and agree or refuse the decree, and if they agree he would   be the first to congratulate.

He said the Islah (Islamists party) supporters are not enough for the new governor to achieve the security and stability in this sensitive province.
"Every tribesman knows very well what he can do and what he controls," he said.

About Al Qaeda in Mareb, Al Zayedi said before the crisis of 2011, the estimates of those who belonged to Al Qaeda from Mareb were not more than 30, but now they are hundreds although Mareb is less than other provinces as he said. " Al Qaeda recruited the children of poor families," he said.