Somalia’s opposition congratulates Jubaland leader on re-election

November 25, 2024

MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian.com) – Opposition leaders in Somalia on Monday congratulated Jubaland President Ahmed Madobe for clinching a contentious third-term re-election, which was secured through an indirect vote he managed unilaterally, despite vigorous resistance from the federal government in Mogadishu.

Opposition leaders cautioned President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud against deploying military force against Jubaland authorities, asserting that repeating the failed tactics of former President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, which never coerced Madobe into submission, would be a reckless and futile endeavor.

Former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Wadajir Party leader Abdirahman Abdishakur, and ex-Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire—who now constitute the sole united opposition front against President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s administration—have long opposed his push for a one-person, one-vote election, and their congratulations to Madobe serve as a clear signal that they view his successful management of an indirect election as evidence that Mohamud’s plan is faltering and he will be compelled to hold another indirect vote in 2026.

The opposition has expressed concern that President Mohamud’s assertion of holding a one-person, one-vote election, despite his limited control over the country, is merely a smokescreen to extend his term, while both he and his Prime Minister continue to insist that Somalia will never revert to an indirect election and that the Somali people will soon have the opportunity to directly choose their preferred president.

Critics of Villa Somalia argue that the Somali president’s promise of holding a popular election in 2026 will not be his only unfulfilled commitment, as it will join a series of others, including his late 2022 pledge to liberate Hirshabelle and Galmudug states from Al-Shabaab within three months—an objective that remains unmet—as well as his broader agenda of achieving national unity, constitutional governance, and consensus-based leadership, all of which have yet to materialize.