Letter from Mogadishu: Government meets opposition on forthcoming polls
Columnists
By
David Okwembah
| Jan 24, 2026
The legislative arm of the regional economic bloc, the East African Community, is now fully constituted after the East African Court of Appeal cleared the way for the nine legislators from Somalia to take up their positions in Arusha, Tanzania.
Somalia, which joined the regional bloc in 2023 and elected its legislators last year, ran into high winds when the East African Court of Justice suspended the swearing in of the nine MPs-elect last November.
The appellate court’s decision brings to an end months of legal uncertainty over the last member state to join the EAC.
Somalia’s full participation in the legislative assembly is considered a cornerstone of that membership, giving Mogadishu a direct voice in shaping regional laws and policies
The decision was welcomed by Somalia’s foreign affairs ministry kin congratulating the nine lawmakers who can now take their oath of office at a date to be determined by EALA secretariat.
The nine legislators were hamstrung in taking their oath after Somali academics and political figures petitioned the regional court claiming that the election of the nine was among others politically influenced and that qualified candidates were excluded.
The petition also accused Somalia’s Federal Parliament of breaching appointment rules in a way that favored government-aligned candidates.
The petition further claimed that the Somalia MPs sitting in Mogadishu had violated the EAC procedures for electing MPs to EALA.
The decision by the court temporarily left the Horn of Africa nation without representation in the regional parliament.
With this week’s ruling by the appellate court, those legal obstacles have been removed thus allowing Somalia to fully engage in EALA’s legislative work on regional policy, trade, mobility and cooperation.
Somalia reaffirmed its commitment to working closely with EAC partner states on shared priorities, including economic integration, development and regional stability.
The war-torn country joined the East African Community in 2023 as part of a broader effort to reassert its place in regional institutions after decades of conflict and isolation.
With the Somalia representatives ready to take up their positions, the regional assembly is set for business at full capacity.
And back to elections in Somalia, the federal government has invited the Somali Future Council, a leading opposition alliance, to a national conference in Mogadishu paving the way for an accelerated discussion on the country’s political direction.
The invite on Monday from the Office of Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, was in response to the demand by the opposition for dialogue ahead of the elections that should be held in May.
The opposition parties and some federal member states are concerned that the national government is stoically pushing for the one-person one-vote regardless of the security situation and the preparedness of the National Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
Incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has been at the forefront pushing for universal suffrage in the next polls saying Somalis must participate in deciding who will lead them.
The opposition parties and two federal member states (Puntland and Jubaland) have stood firm saying the security situation cannot allow citizens to exercise that power freely. They want the country to adopt the indirect vote which has been used since 2004 in picking Members of Parliament who then elect the president.
The invitation to the Somali Future Council meets the pledge by the Somali president earlier this year to initiate a broad national consultation process on the country’s political future. The president has faced immense pressure for consensus ahead of upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections.
Last month, the Somali Future Council held an opposition conference in Kismayo, where participants called on the federal government to convene talks before January 20, 2026 to address the electoral process, timelines and mechanisms for reaching a political agreement acceptable to all stakeholders.
According to a statement from the prime minister’s office, the conference will focus on strengthening national unity and social cohesion, supporting a democratic process grounded in consultation and compromise, and ensuring that citizens’ voices play a central role in shaping Somalia’s future.
The planning for the talks to be held in Mogadishu and to be led by the Ministry of justice and constitutional affairs will see the Somali Future Council appoint its own representatives to the secretariat to help unify the agenda.
The conference to run for several days will officially be opened on February 1 with what is expected to be robust discussions especially on the system to be adopted in this year’s polls.
Opposition leaders, including two former Somalia presidents, have warned that delays or unilateral decisions by President Mohamud and his government could deepen political divisions and cause instability.
Somalia is at a political crossroads as it seeks to embrace a more inclusive electoral system, manage disputes between federal authorities, regional administrations and opposition groups.
The issues facing Somalia are not entirely new as past election cycles have been marked by delays, disagreements and fragile compromises.
The invitation to the opposition is a positive move to lower tensions and reopen channels of communication to bridge differences over electoral models, timelines and the balance of power between Mogadishu and regional states.
Hopefully the Mogadishu conference will nip in the bud the hostility between politicians, federal member states and the federal government.