MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s opposition leaders have agreed unanimously to attend a major political conference in Kismayo on Dec. 17, joining the leaders of Jubaland and Puntland and a broad array of politicians and civil society figures for talks widely seen as pivotal to the country’s political future.
The decision was reached at a meeting in Mogadishu on Saturday, participants said, with Jubaland’s president, Ahmed Mohamed Islam Madobe, joining via video link. The leaders said they would attend the conference as a unified bloc, underscoring what they described as the urgency of coordinated opposition engagement at a moment of national uncertainty.
The announcement follows days of speculation that the gathering had been postponed after alleged intervention by Kenyan authorities at the request of Somalia’s federal government. Opposition figures dismissed those reports, confirming that preparations for the conference were proceeding as planned.
The Kismayo talks are expected to focus squarely on Somalia’s next elections, a subject of intensifying dispute. Federal authorities in Mogadishu have insisted on holding a one-person, one-vote election within five months, despite limited logistical preparations and persistent security and governance challenges. Critics argue that the federal government’s effective control remains largely confined to the capital, raising doubts about the feasibility and credibility of a nationwide vote on the proposed timeline.
In addition to members of the Somali Salvation Forum, the main opposition coalition, the conference is expected to draw politicians from across the country’s fractious political spectrum, as well as prominent civil society leaders.
It remains unclear whether former President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, widely known as Farmajo, will attend. Mr. Mohamed has been in Mogadishu in recent weeks but has not publicly confirmed his participation.
Organizers and participants alike say the Kismayo conference is intended to forge a common position on the electoral process and avert what many fear could become a destabilizing political standoff, at a time when Somalia is navigating a fragile transition marked by security threats, regional tensions and competing visions of electoral models.
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