Farmajo allies kicked out of electoral committee ahead of elections
MOGADISHU, Somalia – The Somali opposition recorded a big victory ahead of the elections, following a complaint filed against several officials of the electoral commission, accused of having close ties to incumbent President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo.
The opposition team has submitted 67 names of people it accuses of being the National Intelligence Security Agency [NISA] spies, officials and, or sycophants of Farmajo, that they demanded to be kicked out of the crucial electoral committee.
Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble had formed a ministerial-level committee to receive complaints and evidence on the defendants as the country works hard to prepare for elections in the next two months.
And on Saturday, the committee confirmed that 34 people on the 67-member list submitted by the opposition are indeed unfit for service, with 14 federal-level members involved in the fiasco. This means that the 34 people will be removed from the committee as soon as possible.
The ministerial-level committee team ordered that those responsible involved be immediately fired. This will now allow the country to prepare for elections based on the recent pre-election agreement that was signed by most stakeholders in the country last month.
The recommendation would boost confidence between the opposition and Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble, who has received praise from both sides of the political divide in recent weeks. It is not known if Farmajo still trusts his Prime Minister.
And the impeachment of the defendants could further harm the re-election of Farmajo, who had previously been accused of plotting to rig the elections in his favor. Farmajo, who has been at the helm for four years, expired his term in February but failed to hold an election in the time that led to the pre-election standoff.
Sources told Axadlethat 6 of the 15 disputed HirShabelle members at all levels of election commissions [FEIT], [SEIT] & the dispute resolution team reinstated after objections from outgoing president and chief espionage officer Fahad Yasin, who refused to be fired.
The opposition wants all disputed members they submitted to be removed from electoral bodies to ensure that the upcoming elections are free, fair and transparent.
The names of those affected will be released in due course as the country searches for their long-term replacements. It is not known when the final list of their replacements will be published, but it should be concluded at the earliest before the elections.
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