Mustaqbal Chairman Calls for Genuine Transition to Multiparty System in Puntland

[Deeq A.]

Garowe (PP News Desk) — Mohammed Ismail Siibad, the Chairman of Mustaqbal, a political association, today urged Puntland parliamentarians to appoint a committee to address issues raised by several political associations in relation to the outcome of the pilot local elections held at three districts in Puntland one week ago. Siibad reminded MPs of their duty to uphold Puntland Constitution.

“There is a need to harmonise articles in the Constitution and articles in the electoral law. There is no clarity as to how MPs will be appointed or the size of district councils or how local government budget will be allocated in the absence of a census data. We are bound to repeat the election of a Puntland President by sixty six MPs” Siibad said.

Siibad accused The Transitional Puntland Electoral Commission (TPEC) of power abuse that had resulted in vague political outcomes.

Siibad: “Pilot local elections in Puntland should not be fostering political participation inequality.”

One of the burning political questions raised by the pilot local elections is whether the councils of the Eyl, Ufayn and Qardho will have a higher status than other Puntland districts whose potential voters had not been given the opportunity to vote, as stipulated in the Puntland Constitution. Mr Siibad has long argued that pilot local elections in Puntland should not foster political participation inequality, an argument that chimed in well with several political associations’ stance on TPEC.

Last week, Mustaqbal, and three other political associations issued a joint statement alleging electoral irregularities during the voting at Ufayn, Qardho and Eyl. The statement has made no reference to the source of allegations despite political associations sending observers to polling stations.

“TPEC promoted a cumbersome electoral model as basis for the democratisation process in Puntland. It is based on one used by Somaliland administration every ten years, a process through which existing parties and new political associations contest to qualify for political party status. Puntland political stakeholders should have made it clear that only three political associations will participate in local elections in all districts. This demand would have compelled several political organisations to merge instead of competing with each other” said Ali Adan, a political journalist in Bosaso.

© Puntland Post, 2021

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