Wednesday March 31, 2021
Mogadishu (HOL) - Somalia's Lower House of Parliament approved the addition of two members to the Independent Boundaries and Federation Commission on Wednesday.
Ahmed Zeylici Muse and Mohamed Osman Abdullahi Hamza were approved in a resounding vote.
There 136 MPs in favour, with no objections. Three lawmakers abstained from the vote.
The Independent Boundaries and Federation Commission is tasked with assisting the Federal Government in demarcating the states' boundaries and districts and resolving disputes over boundaries and territorial disputes.
It is unclear how long Muse and Osman's term will last at the commission.
There have been questions surrounding the parliament's legitimacy since its constitutional mandate expired on December 27, 2020.
The federal lawmakers also debated the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Fawziya Abikar Nur, the Health Minister, answered several questions about the government's response to COVID-19 and updated the MPs on its vaccination program's details.
Notably absent from this morning session were 15 MPs banned by the House Speaker, Mohamed Mursal, for what he described as a riot that upended Saturday's session. The MPs have protested that Mursal was out of his constitutional authority to issue such a reprimand. Roads were closed, and a heavy security presence was deployed close to the MPs' homes to deter them from joining the meeting.