MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Jubaland regional leader Ahmed Mohamed Islam Madobe held their first face-to-face meeting in over a year on Sunday, in a bid to ease the political tensions that have strained federal-regional relations since late 2024.
The four-hour closed-door talks, held in the southern port city of Kismayo and mediated by Kenyan intelligence chief Nuradin Hajji, ended without a breakthrough as both parties remained firm on their opposing positions.
President Mohamud, who arrived in Kismayo earlier in the day, was received at the airport by Madobe in a visibly tense and formal handshake – their first public encounter since their political dispute erupted last year.
According to sources close to the meeting, the president presented two key demands: that Jubaland’s leadership nullify Madobe’s controversial re-election in late 2024 for a third term, and that the state commit to participating in the federal government’s push for nationwide, one-person, one-vote elections.
Madobe rejected both conditions, insisting that Mogadishu first formally recognize his 2024 election victory as legitimate and constitutional. He also called for the federal government to intervene in the Banadir regional court’s arrest summons issued against him, which he claims is politically motivated.
Negotiations stalled as both sides stood firm, despite the mediators’ efforts to encourage compromise. Talks are expected to resume in the coming days, with hopes of resolving the year-long impasse.
The president’s surprise visit to Kismayo – seen as an attempt to defuse the growing alliance between Jubaland and opposition leaders – came just a week after a meeting in Nairobi where Madobe and Puntland’s President Said Abdullahi Deni agreed to form a joint council opposing Mohamud’s administration with the Somali Salvation Forum, which brings together opposition leaders, including former President, ex-Prime Ministers and other prominent politicians..
Analysts say Mohamud’s Kismayo visit may be aimed at isolating Puntland and weakening the opposition bloc’s coordinated efforts against federal electoral plans. Critics argue the federal push for one-person, one-vote elections is unrealistic with only months left in the president’s term and suspect it may be a pretext for extending his time in office.
The president also faces criticism for meeting Madobe despite an unresolved court summons issued by the Banadir regional court – a move some legal experts claim may have violated procedural norms.
As Somalia’s political landscape becomes increasingly polarized, the outcome of these talks will likely shape the future of federalism, electoral reform, and national unity in the months ahead.
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