Tuesday 22,April -2025 {HMC} Federal Security Minister Gen. Abdullahi Ismail Fartaag says Jubbaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam (Ahmed Madobe) cannot attend the upcoming National Consultative Forum unless he retracts the regional election that led to his selection—an outcome the federal government has declared illegal.
Speaking on Universal TV on Monday, Fartaag said the November 2024 election in Kismayo, which saw Madobe secure a third term, violated Somalia’s legal procedures and lacked constitutional legitimacy. “If Ahmed Madobe wants to participate in national consultations, he must first withdraw his claim to that election,” Fartaag said in a televised interview Monday.
Jubbaland maintains the process was legitimate.
The federal government refused to recognize the election results and later issued an arrest warrant for Madobe, accusing him of treason and unauthorized disclosure of classified information. In response, Jubbaland suspended relations with Mogadishu and issued a counter-warrant for President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, accusing him of conspiring with extremist groups and overstepping federal limits.
Tensions culminated in armed clashes in December 2024 between federal forces and Jubbaland troops in Ras Kamboni, a border town near Kenya. The violence left multiple casualties and temporarily pushed federal forces out of the area, further deepening the rift between the two sides.
Despite the standoff, Fartaag confirmed that one-person, one-vote local council elections will proceed in six districts of Gedo and two in Lower Juba. He warned that if Jubbaland authorities prevent elections from taking place in Kismayo and Afmadow, the federal government will continue the process in areas under its control.
“These elections are critical to the country’s move toward universal suffrage,” Fartaag said. “If local authorities attempt to obstruct that process, the federal government will act decisively to uphold democratic principles.”
The National Consultative Forum, organized by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, will bring together federal member state leaders to discuss key national issues, including electoral reforms and security coordination.
