Sunday June 14, 2020
MOGADISHU (HOL) - New presidential elections in Jubbaland will be held in two years’ time, the Federal Government has said noting it will now recognize Ahmed Madobe as the interim president of the southerly state.
According to a statement from Villa Somalia Sunday, the Council of Ministers have resolved to recognize Madobe’s elections close to a year after it declared it won’t recognize his election last September.
Noting that it was ‘necessary to form an inclusive government’ in Jubbaland, the Federal Government said ‘the term of the transitional administration will last for two years’ upon which new elections will be held.
State elections are dictated by the respective constitutions and according to the Provisional Federal Constitution, the Federal Government does not have powers to conduct polls in the Federal Member States.
Controversial elections
The declaration by the Federal Government follows a statement from the Ministry of Interior last October that it will not recognize Madobe’s election and subsequent presidency.
Madobe was elected September 22 in a controversial poll which the Federal Government said did not meet the threshold for state elections.
According to the Ministry of Interior, the elders who participated in the election of the state legislators were not the duly recognized ones appearing in the Ministry’s list.
The Ministry then said it would organize new elections in Jubbaland.
In the statement Sunday, the Federal Government also took issue with Kenya over what it termed as ‘naked interference’ in the elections to ‘put pressure of Somalia to gain influence of the maritime case.’
Both Kenya and Somalia are currently locked in a maritime dispute at the International Court of Justice.
The case was postponed last month to next March at Kenya’s request.
Somalia had accused Kenyan troops of propping Madobe and ‘interfering’ with the elections in Jubbaland.
An attempt by Ethiopian forces supporting the Federal Government failed to land in Kismayo ahead of the September 22 polls after they were denied landing by Kenyan troops.
Relations between Jubbaland and the Federal Government have remained strained with the latter imposing travel sanctions following the controversial poll.