Somalia Parliament Cancels the 2 year term Extension Granted to Farmajo

Somalia’s lower house of parliament has voted unanimously to restore an agreement reached last year that will allow the country to hold indirect elections.

Last month, the parliament had voted to extend President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed’s term by two years and for the country to hold its future polls under a one-man, one vote system.

The move, however, was rejected by the senate, prime minister, opposition leaders and four of the country’s six federal member states, leading to standoff in the capital, Mogadishu.

On Saturday, Speaker Mohamed Mursal said 140 MPs had voted to reinstate indirect polls based on the September 2020 agreement, with no lawmakers expressing any objection.

In an address to parliament shortly before the vote, Mohamed, who is popularly known as Farmaajo, called on lawmakers to back the return to the agreement.

He also said he had directed Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble to “spearhead the process of preparations and the implementation of the electoral process including key election security arrangements to ensure elections take in a peaceful and stable atmosphere”.