BAIDOA, Somalia — Authorities in Southwest State have officially announced the list of members for the regional administration’s third parliament, a move that has triggered fresh political tensions with Somalia’s federal government.
The chairperson of the Southwest State Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission unveiled the names of the new lawmakers in Baidoa, saying they would play a key role in the region’s political process.
The step, however, runs counter to the position of the federal authorities in Mogadishu, which have been pushing for nationwide direct elections based on a one-person, one-vote system.
Southwest State appears to favour an indirect electoral model in which traditional elders and selected delegates choose parliamentary members rather than a popular vote.
The disagreement underscores widening differences between Somalia’s federal member states and the central government, particularly over election arrangements and recent constitutional reforms, amid concerns that competing political processes could deepen divisions in the fragile Horn of Africa nation.
