Puntland and Jubaland have not participated in the pre-meeting attended by leaders of Hirshabelle, Galmudug, South West State and the Banadir Governor.
Last night, Puntland expressed reservations about the summit agenda.
“An agenda of the anticipated inclusive electoral summit must be consulted and agreed by all concerned stakeholders. A partial agenda like this might to lead to failure of the summit” tweeted Mohammed Abdirahman, Puntland Interior Minister.
UNSOM expects the electoral summit to finalise the “17 September electoral model.” Both Puntland and Jubaland initially demanded renegotiation of the terms of the electoral agreement.
The Puntland and Jubaland leaders formed the Forum for National Salvation made up of the two leaders, the Union of Presidential Candidates and the Chairman of the Upper House.
“Puntland and Jubaland leaders have no reason to be outside the electoral summit. They shouldn’t be giving the impression that the two Federal Member States are holding the political process hostage” said Hassan Ali, a radio journalist in Mogadishu.
The former Federal Interior Minister Abdi Farah Saeed (Juha) urged the Puntland and Jubaland leaders “to join the summit and argue their case.”
This article first appeared in the © Puntland Post, 2021 and is republished with permission