By Hirshabell’s intellectuals
Thursday September 3, 2026
Purpose: Contribution to the JSP’s critical decision on who will receive the Party Ticket for the upcoming Hirshabelle State leadership election
Your Excellency,
With the greatest respect, I wish to offer these considerations as an independent contribution to the Party’s critical decision on who should receive the JSP ticket for the forthcoming Hirshabelle State presidential election. I respectfully request that the voices and perspectives of Hirshabelle’s educated and professional constituencies also be considered in your deliberations, helping to minimise potential bias and broaden the basis of this important decision, as the choice you make will help shape our State and its future.
Given Hirshabelle’s political divisions, unresolved grievances, institutional weaknesses, security pressures and development challenges, potential candidates should be assessed against the core challenges the next State leadership will be expected to address, rather than on political popularity or electoral calculations alone. Consideration should be given to a candidate whose political leadership has already been tested and who has demonstrated the ability to build consensus, mobilise political and parliamentary support, navigate competing interests and deliver difficult political outcomes. Proven performance provides greater assurance than untested political expectations.
Previous executive leadership and policymaking experience should also merit attention, particularly the leadership of ministries, public institutions, major programmes or complex operations, together with a demonstrated ability to translate strategic decisions into effective implementation. Reconciliation capacity and statewide acceptability are equally important. Hirshabelle requires a leader capable of engaging different constituencies, addressing legitimate grievances, managing political differences and building confidence beyond the political or community base supporting his candidacy.
Institutional reform and state-building capacity should be given particular attention. The preferred candidate should demonstrate the ability to strengthen institutions, professionalise public administration, improve accountability and convert political agreements into sustainable systems and functioning government. Strong educational and analytical capacity—preferably at PhD level or complemented by equivalent depth of professional and leadership experience—would provide additional value in understanding post-conflict peacebuilding, governance, security, development and the longer-term requirements of state-building. Integrity, reliability, and leadership character should remain fundamental. The candidate should be ethical, trustworthy, respectful, and has demonstrated political maturity. A record of sound judgment,
dependable performance and confidences earned through previous experience under the Chairperson’s leadership may provide valuable evidence of readiness for greater responsibility.
The preferred candidate should also be familiar with the functioning of the Federal Government, maintain established relationships with federal institutions and possess the ability to work constructively with other Federal Member States. This would help sustain close federal cooperation while strengthening Hirshabelle’s own legitimacy and institutional capacity. Experience in natural resource management, including agriculture, land, water and climate resilience. The capacity to engage with international donors and development partners would further enhance the candidate’s ability to mobilize resources, build productive partnerships that translates Hirshabelle’s growth potentials into equitable development. Leadership experience in complex, conflict-affected or crisis environments should also be valued, particularly, where it demonstrates understanding of the interconnected relationship between security, stabilisation, reconciliation, governance and development.
Your Excellency;
No single qualification should determine such an important nomination. The strongest candidate should demonstrate a balanced and track record of political leadership, executive competence, experience in reconciliation, institutional reform, strategic judgment, integrity, federal/state relations, development experience, and state-building capability. Although the final decision rests with you, careful consideration may therefore be given to the candidate who demonstrates the strongest combination of competence, integrity, reliability, political viability and state-building capacity to merit the confidence of the JSP and assume the responsibility of governing Hirshabelle.
We respectfully request that this decision receive the highest level of consideration, as its consequences will extend far beyond the election itself and affect millions of people accross Hirshabelle State. Past experience has demonstrated how leadership choices can shape public confidence, institutional performance, political stability and the future direction of the State.
We remain confident that as the chair of JSP leadership you will entrust its ticket to the candidate who most convincingly meets these considerations and offers the strongest prospect of leading Hirshabelle towards a more united, stable, capable and trusted state. It’s paramount that the wishes of the population in HirShabele are given the highest consideration. HirShabele requires new leadership, hence embracing change is inevitable to alter the current status quo that have made the state underdeveloped, impoverished the population in HirShabele, kept the state in perpetual insecurity and emboldened Al Shabab.
We respectfully, submit the above selection criteria to be considered for the JSP selection process of HirShabele leadership candidate.
