Somalia’s Jubbaland Leader Warns Hassan Sheikh Against Imposing Rejected Policies
Jubbaland’s Ahmed Madobe warns Somalia’s president against centralizing power at Kismayo forum
KISMAYO, Somalia — Jubbaland State President Ahmed Mohamed Islam, widely known as Ahmed Madobe, used the opening days of the Somali Future Council conference in Kismayo to warn President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud against consolidating power in ways he once opposed, sharpening a national debate over governance and inclusion.
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Speaking Thursday at the gathering, which he said was convened to address Somalia’s broader political challenges, Madobe urged consensus-based leadership and rebuked what he described as attempts to monopolize authority and resources.
“No one will accept today what President Hassan rejected yesterday,” Madobe said. “We will not allow the country to be destroyed.”
He added that government in Somalia should not be “centered on one individual remaining in power,” stressing that lasting stability depends on consultation and shared responsibility across political actors and federal member states.
“This conference is about saving the country and its people. Governance is not about one person holding on to power,” he said. “Our disagreement with President Hassan was over staying in power and monopolizing resources, and that is not something we can accept or legitimize.”
The remarks underscore longstanding tensions within Somalia’s federal system, where disputes over authority, resources and the balance between Mogadishu and regional states periodically flare into political standoffs. Madobe’s comments appeared aimed at rallying support for a more inclusive, negotiated path on key national questions.
The Somali Future Council conference, which opened this week in Kismayo, has drawn a broad cross-section of political heavyweights and stakeholders. Organizers have framed the forum as a venue to develop practical recommendations that can command nationwide backing and address institutional strains that have complicated governance and reform efforts.
Somalis and international stakeholders are closely watching the outcome of the talks, which bring together former heads of state and government alongside seasoned political figures with deep constituencies. Attendees include:
- Former President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed
- Former Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Rooble
- Former Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khayre
- Former Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdoon (Saacid)
- Former Puntland State President Abdirahman Farole
- Former minister Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame
- Other prominent political leaders
While the conference’s detailed agenda has not been publicly released, participants have signaled that discussions will focus on political settlement, power-sharing, and mechanisms to ensure decisions are anchored in broad consultation rather than unilateral decree. Madobe’s intervention set a pointed tone for those deliberations, framing the stakes as existential for Somalia’s state-building project.
His comments also evoked the cyclical nature of Somali politics, in which opposition movements often campaign against centralized control only to face similar accusations once in office. By invoking President Hassan’s past positions, Madobe appealed to a consistency test that resonates with politically active Somalis who have experienced repeated shifts in alliances and governing styles.
The presidency has not publicly responded at the forum, but Madobe’s challenge is likely to reverberate beyond Kismayo as participants seek a formula to ease friction between the federal government and regional administrations. Any outcomes will be scrutinized for their practicality, breadth of buy-in and potential to reduce zero-sum politics that have slowed reforms and diverted attention from pressing security and economic priorities.
For now, the Kismayo meetings have given Somalia’s political class a stage to test ideas, calibrate alliances and, in Madobe’s case, draw a bright line around what he characterized as unacceptable concentrations of power. Whether the conference can translate that rhetoric into shared commitments and durable mechanisms remains the question participants and observers hope to answer in the days ahead.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
