Wednesday December 15, 2021
ADDIS ABABA (HOL) - The African Union has called on Somalia to expedite the completion of the long-running elections amid threats by the opposition to take drastic measures following disputes over the transparency of the process.
The African Union Peace and Security Council said in a communique it ‘ encourages the FGS, in particular, the Federal Election Implementation Team (FEIT) to expedite the organization of all pending elections within the stipulated timelines.’
The remarks follow an AUPSC meeting on December 7 which also deliberated on the security situation in the country and the prospects for a new force to replace AMISOM once its mandate ends.
The calls by the AU body on the need to complete the elections come in the wake of threats by the Council of Presidential Candidates (CPC) to form a caretaker council to lead the country following what it termed as a heavily compromised electoral process.
Meanwhile, the Lower House elections continue to drag on with a clear possibility of spilling into 2022. Less than 50 MPs out of 275 have since been elected countrywide.
Puntland, HirShabelle and Jubaland have not elected a single MP and so has the Banaadiri community in Mogadishu which is allocated five seats. Jubaland announced Tuesday 14 new seats to be contested but has not yet set electoral timelines.