Puntland Official Warns of Possible Parallel Government Amid Somalia Election Dispute

MOGADISHU —Puntland officials and Somali opposition figures have raised concerns over the country’s unresolved electoral dispute, warning that failure to reach a political agreement could deepen divisions and lead to competing political arrangements.

The remarks were made during a PDRC Talks forum, where political figures discussed Somalia’s electoral process, the ongoing disagreements between the Federal Government and opposition groups, and the potential consequences of failing to reach a consensus on the country’s political transition.

Mohamed Dhabancad, Puntland’s envoy for negotiations on Somalia’s electoral process, warned that continued deadlock could prompt some political actors to pursue an alternative political arrangement outside the framework currently centered in Mogadishu.

“Another Somali government could be formed. Whatever Mogadishu holds, every region could claim for itself, and there would be no central government if Hassan does not allow the election to take place,” Dhabancad said.

His comments come amid continued disagreements between the Federal Government, several federal member states and opposition figures over the electoral framework, the timing of the elections and the management of the country’s political transition.

Puntland and opposition leaders have called for an electoral process based on an agreement among Somalia’s political stakeholders. The Federal Government has maintained that preparations for the elections should proceed under the framework it has put forward.

The latest remarks underscore the growing political tensions surrounding Somalia’s electoral process, as efforts continue to bring the Federal Government, federal member states and opposition groups to a negotiated agreement.

A failure to resolve the dispute could have broader implications for Somalia’s political institutions and relations between the country’s federal and opposition actors, particularly as the political transition and electoral timetable remain unresolved.