MOGADISHU, Somalia — President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said he will seek a third term, asserting Somalia’s provisional constitution permits him to run again because his two previous mandates were not consecutive, a move that deepens political tensions over contentious constitutional changes.
Mohamud, first elected in 2012 and returned to office in 2022 after five years out of power, framed his bid as consistent with the law’s limit on back-to-back presidencies. “The constitution does not prohibit me from running again,” he said. “It only prevents a president from being elected for two consecutive terms. I was elected twice, but not consecutively.”
- Advertisement -
The president said his candidacy would unfold under a revised constitutional framework and a multiparty political system, signaling a shift away from Somalia’s long-standing clan-based model. The government has pitched the constitutional overhaul as the foundation for direct elections and party-based politics after decades of conflict and fragmented governance.
His announcement lands as parliament debates controversial amendments that have drawn sharp resistance from rival politicians and the leaders of the Jubbaland and Puntland State regional states. Opponents accuse Mohamud of steering the review process to consolidate power and potentially extend his tenure—allegations the administration denies.
Parliamentary leaders are advancing the amendments amid boycotts and street protests by opposition lawmakers, who say the process lacks consensus and transparency. Sessions of the bicameral legislature have repeatedly been disrupted in recent weeks, with some legislators barred after clashes over how the review is being handled.
The escalating dispute has compounded uncertainty at a delicate political moment. Talks were expected in Mogadishu between the federal government and the Somali Salvation Forum, a coalition of opposition leaders pressing for dialogue on the election timeline, national security and the scope of constitutional reform.
Somalia’s move toward direct voting and a stable multiparty system is widely seen as essential to strengthening national institutions and loosening the grip of clan-based power-sharing. But the pace and substance of constitutional changes have become a flashpoint, testing fragile federal-regional relations and dividing the political class ahead of a high-stakes electoral cycle.
Mohamud’s supporters argue that clarifying term limits and codifying a party system will help end perennial disputes that have delayed elections and sapped state authority. Critics counter that reform without broad agreement could erode legitimacy, strain the federal compact and deepen rifts with regional administrations whose buy-in will be crucial to any national vote.
As the president seeks a third term, the path forward is likely to hinge on whether parliamentary leaders can broker consensus on the most sensitive elements of the draft—executive powers, electoral sequencing and the balance between the federal government and regional states—and whether opposition blocs return to the legislative process. With tempers high in Mogadishu and skepticism mounting in Garowe and Kismayo, the next moves by both sides will help determine whether Somalia’s constitutional moment defuses tension or drives it into a wider political crisis.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
