MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – The presidents of Jubaland and Puntland, Ahmed Mohamed Islam and Saeed Abdullahi Deni, arrived in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, on Tuesday, where they were warmly received by members of Parliament and senior political figures.
The two regional leaders, who had not traveled to Mogadishu since their dispute with the federal government became public, are expected to take part in talks with federal officials aimed at resolving a prolonged political standoff over elections. The negotiations come as only a few months remain before the terms of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and the federal Parliament are set to expire.
President Mohamud’s government has consistently maintained that it intends to hold a one-person, one-vote election before the end of its mandate. However, such a plan currently appears impractical, given the absence of necessary preparations, limited time, and the lack of a national consensus on the framework for conducting such a vote.
Leaders from Jubaland and Puntland, along with opposition figures grouped under the Somali Future Council, have expressed concern that the president and Parliament may seek to extend their terms in office, a possibility they have warned against for months.
The talks, convened under pressure from international partners, are seen as an effort to avert a deepening crisis. Still, it remains unclear whether they will yield concrete results or follow the trajectory of earlier negotiations between the opposition and the government of former President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as Farmajo. Those talks collapsed in 2021 and were followed by street clashes in Mogadishu between government forces and opposition-aligned units, plunging the capital into days of instability.
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