Somalia: Puntland Calls for Credible National Elections, Criticises Somalia's One-Person-One-Vote Push

Garowe, July 7 — Somalia's Puntland regional administration called for what it described as a legitimate, transparent and broadly accepted electoral process, criticising President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's renewed push for one-person-one-vote elections.

Puntland Information Minister Farhan Ali Mahmoud made the remarks in response to comments by the president during the inauguration of South West State President Adan Mohamed Nur (Adan Madoobe) in Baidoa.

President Hassan Sheikh said elections recently held in South West reflected Somalia's new path towards democracy, stability and state-building, arguing the country had moved beyond an era in which electoral processes were driven by narrow political interests and personal agendas.

Rejecting that assessment, the Puntland minister said the one-person-one-vote model championed by the president was reflected in the South West election, which he described as a process whose outcome had been predetermined.

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He also accused the president of overlooking another individual whom he claimed had effectively already been selected for office and was present at the inauguration ceremony.

"Everything that is staged will not produce a lasting solution but will instead deepen the existing problems," the minister said.

He added that Puntland had long warned about what it viewed as flaws in Somalia's political process and argued that recent developments had vindicated those concerns.

"Puntland has warned the Somali people about these mistakes for a long time. The country should move toward a legitimate election," he said.

The dispute comes as political tensions persist over Somalia's electoral framework, with the federal government advocating universal suffrage while several regional administrations and opposition figures have questioned the process and called for broader political consensus.