As the clock ticked towards 12am on Monday, young men counted the seconds to midnight before firing a hail of bullets into the calm dark skies over the Somali capital to celebrate the end of President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed’s term in office.
Rewind four years, and young men in Mogadishu were also turning their guns upwards but for the exact opposite reason – to express their joy at Mohamed, popularly known as Farmaajo, taking office.
Remarkably, in a country where clan loyalty runs deep, the crowd was celebrating the election defeat of their own clansmen. Running on a nationalist platform and a promise to wipe out the al-Qaeda-linked armed group al-Shabab, Farmaajo – a bespectacled Somali-American who lived for decades in Buffalo, New York – had defeated two former presidents who hail from the coastal city to clinch the top seat in the 2017 election.
By Dahir A. Issa
Opinion
In 2016, when Puntland agreed to the electoral model after initially rejecting it on grounds that one person, one vote elections outlined at the end of the transition agreement had been jettisoned, Michael Keating, the former UN Representative in Somalia, urged political leaders to start preparations for one, person elections “now”.
In 2017 the former Speaker of the Somali Parliament Mohamed Jawari held a meeting with a committee tasked with preparing Somalia for 2021 elections. “We have to be honest with our people and make it clear now if we are unable to hold one person, one vote elections. This clarity will spare the nation political uncertainty and disagreements over elections” said Jawari.
By T. Roble
GOOBJOOG NEWS|DHUSAMAREB: Somalia is waking up this morning to an aura of uncertainty after eight men sitting in Dhusamareb for the last three days failed to unlock the ongoing electoral gridlock amid high expectations locally and internationally.
President Mohamed Farmaajo returned to Mogadishu Friday night empty-handed after a meeting he chaired which brought together the leaders of the five Federal Member States and Banaadir Regional Administration stood ground on its demands.
The failed talks are a disappointment to the country which was banking on the eight leaders to resolve their disputes and let elections take place.
Puntland to Swap Fish for Khat from Ethiopia
Bosaso (PP News Desk) Puntland State Aviation Minister Ilyas Osman inaugurated Ethiopian Airlines cargo service to enhance trade relations between Somalia and Ethiopia.
The Ethiopian Consular in Puntland Degnachew Yitbarek, Somali and Ethiopian businessmen had attended the ceremony held in Bosaso.
Barter system: Ethiopian businessmen will import Habo tuna to Ethiopia in a deal that reflects Somalia inability to benefit from comparative advantage in trade.
Ilyas commended the initiative to boost trade ties between Somalia and Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Consular said an Ethiopian businessman would arrive in Bosaso to import fish from Puntland.