September 27, 2016 | Daily Monitoring Report
Somali President’s Stay In Office Extended Further As Poll Teams Push Vote ToNov 30
27 September – Source: Goobjoog News – 354 words
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud will have another 30 days stay at Villa Somalia on top of the 50 days already added to his term thanks to the new electoral timelines released by the Federal and State level electoral teams. After a three day meeting in Mogadishu which started on the eve of the elections of the Lower House members as earlier planned, the team announced a new president would be elected November 30 while members of the Lower House will be elected between October 23 and November 10.
Heads of regional administrations will be expected to submit list of members elected for the Upper House by the regional assemblies and other formations in cases where the assemblies do not exist latest October 5. Further, the poll bodies called on clan elders to ensure the list of the delegates who will elect the members of the Lower House are submitted by October 10. Subsequently, Speakers of both Houses of Parliament will be elected November 23 paving for Presidential elections November 30.
In a statement Monday, the Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (FIEIT and the State Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (SIEIT) cited a number of challenges which necessitated the delays. Budgetary constraints, lack of a functional dispute resolution committee, security and administrative challenges are some of the challenges the poll bodies cited as major concerns. The financing of the elections is split into 60% and 40% to be met by the international community and Somalia respectively. They also raised concerns about failure by elders to submit lists of delegates.
In August, the FIEIT announced the elections of the President would be held October 30while that of members of the Lower House would be conducted between September 24 and October 10. The Upper House ought to have been constituted by September 25 while the elections of the Speakers were slated for October 25. The two teams noted that the dispute resolution committee will start operations by October 8, 2016. Elections of the Hiiraan/Middle Shabelle region will be held in Mogadishu following a majority vote by elders representing the two regions, the polls body said.
Key Headlines
- Somali President’s stay in office extended further as poll teams push vote to Nov 30 (Goobjoog News)
- Hiiraan Elders Reject MPs Selection In Mogadishu (Garowe Online)
- Three Killed Ten Others Injured In Road Crash In Southern Somalia (Goobjoog News)
- Government To Review Contracts Of Companies Managing Mogadishu’s Air And Seaports (Jowhar.com)
- Kismaayo Readies For The 2016 Electoral Process (New Vision Uganda)
- Somalia Extends Election Dates By 30 Days (The East African)
- Could Somaliland’s New Port Change The Country’s Future? (Daily Maverick)
NATIONAL MEDIA
Hiiraan Elders Reject MPs Selection In Mogadishu
27 September – Source: Garowe Online – 217 Words
Somalia’s electoral body decision to select the upcoming MPs for Hiiraan and Middle Shabelle regions in the capital Mogadishu, has caused a stir in Beledweyene, Garowe Online reports.Chairman of the Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation team (FIEIT), Omar Abdulle has announced earlier that the parliamentary elections for Hiiraan and Middle Shabelle regions will take place in Mogadishu, unlike other regional states that will carry out parliamentary elections in their state capitals.
During the press briefing, Omar Abdulle said that the clan elders and communities in both regions have welcomed the replacement of the elections to the capital Mogadishu.On the other side, traditional elders in Hiiraan region, have rejected the decision and described the move as “outrageous” and threatened to boycott the parliamentary election process.
They held meetings in Beledweyne town, regional capital of Hiiraan region, and stated that 16 delegate- from Hiiran and Middle Shabelle- who participated in the ongoing conference for the Federal and State electoral committees, don’t represent their region.We will not accept the parliamentary elections in Mogadishu, we are going to elect our MPs in Hiiraan region, a prominent elder said. This comes amid extended political deadlock in negotiations for the formation of state for Hiiraan and Middle Shabelle regions, due to mistrust between Somali government and clan elders in the regions.
Three Killed, Ten Others Injured In Road Crash In Southern Somalia
27 September – Source: Goobjoog News – 215 Words
Three people died and ten others were injured on Monday evening following a road accident near the administrative capital of Southwest State, Baidoa. Two of the victims died on the spot while the third one died on arrival at Baidoa Hospital where the injured were taken with serious injuries. The three who died on the spot were two men and the driver of a mini bus that collided head-on with a lorry. Mr Farah Abdi, a police officer in Baidoa town said the two men who were in the bus, were coming from a funeral outside Baidoa when the accident occurred. “There are road works going on and the road is narrow, Drivers should be careful to avoid accidents, “said Mr Abdi. At the Baidoa Hospital, doctors were busy treating the critically injured who had been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.
One of the doctors, who declined to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media, described the patient’s condition as “serious but stable” He appealed to motorists to exercise care while plying the route especially at the moment when they are using roads with large potholes. “We urge drivers to exercise caution especially now when they are using these road that have not been repaired since 1990,” he said.
Government To Review Contracts Of Companies Managing Mogadishu’s Air And Seaports
26 September – Source: Jowhar.com – 197 Words
The federal government of Somalia is set to review the contracts of two Turkish companies managing the Mogadishu seaport and Aden Abdulle airport. The move comes after concerns emerged over the revenue generation and sharing of both facilities. Finance Minister Mohamed Adan Fargeeti confirmed the Federal government’s intention to audit and review the activities of Al-Beyrak and Favori companies managing the sea and airports respectively.
“Both contracts are under review, Al-Beyrak told us the revenue they generate and what they earn were not at par,” the Minister told Horn cable TV. He said they believed most of the revenue generated by the Airport goes to Favori, the company managing the facility adding that a decision will be reached over the same. “The government believes Favori receives more resources than the National treasury but the review will be in favor of both parties,” said the minister who alluded to a contract extension for both companies. Favori took over management of the Country’s biggest airport from SKA in September 2013 after the latter managed it for three years. Al-Beyrak on the other hand landed management of the Mogadishu Seaport in September 2014 and has since introduced modernized operations.
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA
Kismaayo Readies For The 2016 Electoral Process
27 September – Source: New Vision, Uganda -263 Words
As a visitor enters the port city of Kismaayo, he is greeted by an imposing monument bearing the words ‘Kismaayo waa nabad’, which means ‘Kismaayo is peaceful’ in Somali.These reassuring words are especially significant now as Somalia prepares for the formal start of the 2016 electoral process. Preparations for the forthcoming electoral process have been gathering pace, as parliamentary candidates drum up support for their campaigns for elected office.Mohamed Salad Nunow and Abdi Gashan Igal will be seeking the endorsements of clan elders and Electoral College delegates to represent the people of Somalia in the next federal parliament.
Supporters of the two candidates have already placed campaign posters in strategic positions around Kismaayo to promote their candidate. “Vote for Justice and Prosperity. Elect a youth who is loyal”, one of the posters reads. “Support me for real representation, prosperity, peace and stability”, reads another.
Mohamed Nunow has been on the campaign trail for weeks now. He commends the Jubbaland administration’s efforts to prepare the state for the electoral process.“This year’s electoral process seems to be more competitive. And when there are many candidates, it restores the hope for democracy and good governance for this country,’’ the parliamentary candidate observed.
Somalia Extends Election Dates By 30 Days
27 September- Source: The East African – 396 Words
Somalia has postponed its presidential and parliamentary election dates by a month due to clan disputes, security threats and unpreparedness, the electoral body said. The presidential election will now take place onNovember 30, preceded by parliamentary elections that will be held from October 23 to November 10.The chairman of the Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (FIEIT), Omar Mohamed Abdulle, issued a statement on Monday evening saying that although substantial progress had been made in the electoral process, the task could not be completed due to political challenges, security, management of the electoral budget, and the Election Dispute Resolution Mechanism, which is yet to commence work.
Other challenges include failure by some traditional elders to submit the list of delegates to take part in the elections, while some clans have disputed the 30 per cent quota for women leaders. “However, there is breakthrough on the electoral venue for the Hiiraan and Middle Shabelle regions. After extensive discussions, 16 out of the 18 traditional elders agreed that the electoral process for the two regions be held in the capital Mogadishu,” said Mr Abdulle.
Following a three-day meeting between FIEIT and the State Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (SIEIT), it was agreed that the Election Dispute Resolution Mechanism should be operational by October 8 to handle issues arising from the polling process. Besides logistical challenges, the Somalia-based terrorist group Al-Shabaab had said they would disrupt the election process and warned the 135 clan leaders selected to chair the voting of legislators not to carry out their designated role.Mr Abdulle is now calling on the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) to quickly deploy troops to Galmudug capital of Cadaado to ensure that election preparations takes place. The peacekeepers had said they would guarantee the safety of electoral venues.
OPINION, ANALYSIS, AND CULTURE
“Much will hinge on Somaliland’s elections next year. At a poll in 2010 the then-ruling party lost and handed over peacefully to the winner. Another transparent vote will make it hard to ignore calls for recognition.On the Horn of Africa, the future is never certain, but Somaliland may win out if only because it’s the best house on a very bad street,”
Could Somaliland’s New Port Change The Country’s Future?
27 September – Source: Daily Maverick – 291 Words
Somaliland is, famously, the country that doesn’t exist. But the territory’s ambitious new port project may force major powers to rethink this status as Somaliland sells peace and stability in a region short on both. On a rough street, it’s a risk upsetting the neighbours, but the port of Berbera in Somaliland has done just that.A Dubai firm, DP World, has started work as part of a 30-year deal to run the harbour in a country you might say is not really there.
At independence in 1960, British Somaliland fused with the rest of Somalia but, in 1991 when the government in Mogadishu collapsed, they took back sovereignty.In 25 years, no one has recognised the so-called Republic of Somaliland. Yet, in a region known for tyranny and turmoil, it is a working democracy, with elections, several opposition parties and a relatively free press. The new port deal is the biggest since independence, but it’s complicated. DP also runs the port next door in Djibouti where they were sued by the government of President Ismaïl Guelleh, who claimed the firm had taken bribes. The case was thrown out earlier this year by a commercial court in London.
DP now has a choice. If things go bad in Djibouti, they have Berbera a short way down the coast on the same bottleneck that links the Indian Ocean to Suez.There is hope in the capital, Hargeisa, that traffic through Berbera and the trade links it will bring may help the push for recognition even if it does nothing for relations with Mr Guelleh. Somaliland passports are accepted across Africa, Europe and the US and there are direct flights from Hargeisa to Dubai, Nairobi and Addis Ababa. The country has its own police, army and public service and is more peaceful than neighbouring states such as Ethiopia and Somalia.
TOP TWEETS
@omabha:Somalia’s delayed parliamentary poll to start October 23, presidential Nov… – Reuters UK http://dlvr.it/MLTXvm #Somalia
@UNODC_MCP:GMCP successfully repatriates Somali persons from Mauritius to Somalia with a transit in Seychelles #Somalia#Fightpiracy #Maritimesecurity
@africaarguments:#Somalia has delayed its (s)elections by another month amidst squabbling. Meanwhile, al-Shabaab is very active http://buff.ly/2dbdvtL
@Eye_on_Somalia:#goobjoog Somali President’s stay in office extended further as poll teams push vote to Nov 30: Pres…http://bit.ly/2dvCEyP #somalia
@Dahirkulane:Another setback in the electoral process of selecting MP’s Senators & President in #Somalia delay after delay with no reasonable explanation
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IMAGE OF THE DAY
A nurse attends to a patient at Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al’Nahyan hospital in Mogadishu.
Photo: AMISOM.