Interpretations Differ As Somalia’s President Reaches End Of Term

Puntland’s state minister of information, Abdullahi Timacadde, was one of the first to react when he held a press conference in the Galmudug regional capital Dhusamareb declaring that Puntland administration would “not recognise” Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (Farmajo) as President of Somalia after Feb. 7th.

The Puntland statement did not issue any discernable constitutional or legal basis for issuing the statement, however.

Presidential Candidates

Similarly, the Council of Presidential Candidates, an umbrella group that includes two former Presidents, one former Prime Minister, and a number of former federal ministers, who are all aspiring to lead the country’s next Federal Government issued a strongly-worded press statement  and declared that, after Feb. 7th, they would “no longer recognise Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (Farmajo) as President of Somalia”.

The Council called for the formation of a “Transitional National Council” – which had no clear constitutional or legal authority.

The Council includes ex-President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, ex-President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, ex-Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire, and a number of ex Ministers, Abdikarim Guled, Abdirahman Abdishakur, and Mohamed Abdi Gandhi.

In contrast, Somali presidential candidate Dr Abdinasir Abdille Mohamed, who was a candidate in the 2017 election and is not a member of the Council of Presidential Candidates, issued an independent statement recognising President Farmajo in a “caretaker role with limited powers”.

He also issued a call to avoid the “illegal term extension”, warning against “any political action that may cause political instability ”, and urged “all political stakeholders to exercise restraint”. Dr. Abdinasir also called for “national consultation conference among stakeholders…to agree on an electoral timetable for 2021 federal elections”.

International Community

The international community meanwhile issued a statement on Feb. 8th, expressing support for “further dialogue in a calm and constructive spirit”, while warning against “a parallel process or partial elections, or any other actions that lack broad agreement”.

Countries and international organizations that signed the press statement included: African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Ethiopia, European Union (EU), Finland, France, Germany, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, (the) League of Arab States (LAS), Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russian Federation, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, and the United Nations.

In the coming days and weeks, Somalia will focus on agreeing on an election timetable and holding federal parliamentary elections across the country’s five regional states and in Mogadishu, where the federal government is based.

This article first appeared in the © Puntland Post, 2021 and is republished with permission