MOGADISHU, Somalia
Somalia’s presidential
elections will be held on May 15, signaling an end to more than a year of
delays in establishing a new government.Somalia Parliament
The decision was announced on
Thursday by the chairman of a new parliamentary team tasked with preparing and
overseeing the elections moments after the bicameral federal parliament elected
the taskforce.
The team, chaired by
legislators Abdikani Gelle and deputised by Mohamed Kerrow, will oversee the
president's election by the MPs in the two houses – the 54-member Senate and
the Lower House of 275 MPs.
The vote in a joint sitting of
parliament will be by secret ballot.
At least 15 contenders,
including incumbent Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo, two former presidents Hassan
Sheikh Mohamud and Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, and former Prime Minister Hassan
Khaire have announced they will contest.
Somalia has never re-elected a
sitting President, and all of the last five indirect polls have sprung forth a
newcomer. Other contenders in the race include Puntland President Said
Abdullahi Deni and former Foreign Minister Abdirizak Mohamed.
The electoral
programme shows that all approved presidential candidates will address
joint sittings of parliament on May 11 and 12.
The electoral day coincides
with the Somali Youth Day which marks the formation of the Somali Youth League,
the independence-search movement that was launched in 1943.
The election will be held
nearly 15 months later than the original date in March last year. The polls
were delayed largely because of bickering by stakeholders on how to select
delegates and where the polls were to be conducted.
The parliamentary elections
were only completed last week.
International pressure,
including threats by the International Monetary Fund to suspend the debt review
programme, has pushed Somali politicians back into the electoral schedule. –
The East African
No comments:
Post a Comment