MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s former Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid on Wednesday warned the country has entered a “difficult phase of a constitutional vacuum,” highlighting deepening political uncertainty after the federal parliament’s mandate expired and with the president’s term set to lapse in the coming weeks – all without an election in sight.
The moment, he suggested, carries both urgency and risk, as institutions drift beyond their formal mandates.
“FGS is now operating on a borrowed time & has very few risky options left to implement the agendas they invested so much in,” Abdirashid said on X.
His remarks sharpen the focus on a narrowing window for political compromise, as tensions build over the direction of governance and the legitimacy of ongoing decisions.
“There is still one month left for the President to convene all stakeholders & reach a settlement that is acceptable to everyone. This time emphasis should be also placed on ways to fix what is becoming a vicious cycle of personalizing power by the end of a term.”
The warning came a day after Somali government officials briefed ambassadors of international partners in Mogadishu, stating that the mandates of both parliament and the president had been extended by one year. Officials said the extension followed the adoption of a new constitution that took effect in March.
The move, however, remains contested. Opposition figures argue the constitution was adopted without sufficient political consensus among key stakeholders, raising fresh questions about legitimacy at a time when the country’s political future is already uncertain.
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