Monday August 2, 2021
Senate Speaker Hashi (L), meeting with Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble (C) and Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohamed Guled (R). CREDIT: OPM-Somalia
Mogadishu (HOL) - Somali Upper House Speaker, Abdi Hashi Abdullahi, has rejected a proposal from Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble.
In a letter addressed to the PM, Abdi Hashi called on Roble to defer management of Somaliland's Senate to himself and Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohamed Guled.
"The people of the north have a constitutional right to decide their destiny and to ensure the independence of the 57 seats they hold in both chambers," Abdi Hashi said.
Abdi Hashi proposed three points that he said could rectify the dispute between the electoral commissions in the northern regions.
Along with the PM recusing himself from the Somaliland elections, Hashi suggested that the two competing SEIT electoral commissions in the northern regions be unified by selecting eight members from among them to represent the Somaliland constituency. In the event of further disagreement, Hashi advocated for a joint board to be set up as per an arrangement made on June 19, 2020.
Finally, Hashi recommended that the election for Somaliland's Upper House be held in Halane, with security provided by the Somali Police Force and
Senator Hashi has met with the PM several times in recent months to discuss how Somaliland would be represented in the electoral process. He remained one of the federal government's foremost critics and previously accused President Farmajo of gerrymandering the elections in Somaliland to install loyalists as delegates.
Read the full letter below:
