COVID-19 MAY “PROVE A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PRETEXT FOR TERM EXTENSION” IN SOMALIA

[Deeq A.]

Mogadishu (PP News Desk) — The Federal Government of Somalia is assessing the impact Covid-19 May have on milestones of which 2021 elections is the most significant.

Somalia is a country with less than rudimentary health services. The Federal Health Ministry confirmed earlier today one person in Mogadishu had tested positive for COVID-19.

The possibility of Coronavirus spike through community transmission is high in Somalia. The Federal Government cannot introduce and enforce lockdown on areas known to have the largest number of patients nor is there a mechanism through which the Federal Government and Federal Member States coordinate health emergencies.

“With no consensus on the electoral model insight, uncertainty about Covid-19 in Somalia can prove a pretext to postpone 2021 elections indefinitely” says Ali Hassan, a political commentator in Garowe.

Grounds for a term extension are in the electoral law

Article 53 of the electoral law passed in December by the Federal Parliament stipulates “elections can be postponed in the event of force majeure throughout or half of the country.”

© Puntland Post, 2020  

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