MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Puntland President Saeed Abdullahi Deni said on Wednesday he will remain in Mogadishu until President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud leaves office, accusing him of clinging to power as Somalia faces a deepening political impasse over elections.
Speaking at a meeting of the Somali Future Council, which brings together the leaders of Puntland and Jubaland alongside opposition figures, Deni said President Mohamud and his government had assumed they would not travel to Mogadishu to engage in talks on elections initiated by Villa Somalia, the presidential palace.
Deni said they would stay in the capital and would not allow those who consider Mogadishu their exclusive domain to assert control. He indicated they were prepared to exhaust all political means to compel President Mohamud to step down.
He reiterated that he and Jubaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam, known as Ahmed Madobe, would not leave Mogadishu until the country’s political crisis and dispute over elections are fully resolved and Somalia is placed on a path toward a smooth transfer of power and political stability.
Deni said he believes Mogadishu has become the focal point of efforts to divide the country, adding that they had come to the city to prevent that outcome and to safeguard Somalia’s unity and development.
Madobe, addressing the same gathering, said there would be accountability for what he described as abuses of power by officials in Mogadishu, including the suppression of dissenting voices and unilateral amendments of the constitution.
Other opposition figures at the meeting, including former prime ministers Hassan Ali Khaire, Abdi Farah Shirdon and Mohamed Hussein Roble, urged President Mohamud to negotiate in good faith to resolve the current political stalemate before the remaining three months of his term expire.
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