Mogadishu (WDN) – Somalia’s House of the People Standing Committee has approved the framework for electing a new Speaker of Parliament following the vacancy created after former Speaker Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur (Aden Madoobe) was elected President of South West State.

Meeting in Mogadishu, the committee endorsed the eligibility requirements for candidates seeking the positions of Speaker and Deputy Speakers, citing falsely the Provisional Federal Constitution (PFCS) and the House’s internal rules.

According to the approved criteria, candidates must:

• Be a serving member of the House of the People.
• Be at least 35 years old.
• Have two Somali parents.
• Not be married to a foreign national.
• Renounce any foreign citizenship if elected.
• Submit a formal declaration of assets to the Office of the Auditor General.
• Meet all other constitutional and legal requirements governing eligibility.

The committee is expected to announce the election timetable, candidate registration process, and campaign schedule in the coming days. However, the decision has immediately sparked renewed political debate.

Opposition figures and many political observers argue that the exercise is unnecessary because, in their view, the constitutional mandate of the current House of the People expired in April 2026. With Somalia already entering an election period and internationally mediated political negotiations still underway over the country’s constitutional and electoral future, critics question the need to elect a new parliamentary speaker at this stage.

Instead, they contend that the First Deputy Speaker could continue performing the Speaker’s administrative duties on an acting basis until a new parliament is elected and sworn into office. In their view, filling one of the country’s highest constitutional offices only weeks before a new legislative cycle risks creating additional political controversy rather than ensuring institutional continuity.

Some opposition leaders have also questioned the legal basis for several of the newly approved eligibility requirements.

In particular, critics argue that conditions requiring candidates not to be married to foreign nationals and obliging holders of dual citizenship to renounce their second nationality before assuming office are not explicitly provided for in the Provisional Federal Constitution. They contend that imposing such requirements through parliamentary procedures, rather than constitutional amendment or legislation, could invite legal and constitutional challenges.

Supporters of the process, however, argue that Parliament has an obligation to fill vacant leadership positions to ensure the uninterrupted functioning of the legislature until a new House is elected.

The controversy comes due to Somalia’s prolonged constitutional and electoral dispute, with negotiations between the Federal Government and opposition groups continuing under international mediation. The timing of the Speaker’s election is therefore likely to become another contentious issue in an already polarized political landscape.

Whether the election proceeds as planned or becomes the subject of further legal and political disputes may depend on the broader outcome of the ongoing negotiations over Somalia’s constitutional future and electoral roadmap.

WardheerNews