The nine political associations that CRPAANP certified as eligible for elections to decide national parties declared they were as much of stakeholders as the existing 3 national parties whose constitutional term in office is expiring next month at a press conference they jointly held in the capital, Hargeisa, today.
The associations made it clear that they were legally in a position to run for the leadership of the country as much as anybody else.
“Somaliland is located in a region presently reeling under several burdensome challenges and conflicts that obligate on all of Somaliland and its government to responsibly and sagaciously safeguard the stability and tranquility of the nation,” a joint statement read out at the conference pointed out in a preamble to an eight-point communique the leaders of the associations penned.
Underlining the associations’ rightful role as legitimate stakeholders of the election process and, especially, as the 5-year government term came to an end on November 13 and that of the national parties was going to end on 26 December 2022, the associations pointed out that:
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- The peace and stability of the country must be collectively protected resolving contentious issues through the application of the Constitution, election laws and the decision that the Constitutional Court reached on this matter earlier;
- In accordance with Article 9 of the Constitution of the Republic of Somaliland and Article 5 of Law No. 14/2011 on elections, the political associations election will be held, first, to decide the three national parties for the next 10 years who will have the mandate to run for elections that follow first of which will be that for the presidency;
- As is laid forth by the Constitution and laws in place, the implementation of the voter registration, election environment, election schedules and the conduct of elections is the sole responsibility of the independent National Electoral Commission, and the political associations are more than prepared to fully cooperate with NEC in the fulfillment of its mandated responsibilities;
- We urge that all outstanding issues be resolved through dialogue among key stakeholders, namely, the three national parties, 9 political associations, the government, and the Electoral Commission. At this juncture of time, the political associations have as much right as the national parties whose term is to expire on 26 December 2022 and, accordingly, they will not agree to any settlement that they were not party to;
- Only through election results should the leadership of the country be decided. Neither the constitution nor governance principles countenance a power vacuum. Consequently, we caution political parties to breach the law and mislead the public;
- The national security agencies are obliged to strictly abide by responsibilities conferred on them by the national constitution and relevant bylaws, and that to politically interfere on the execution of their duties is abhorrent as it is unlawful;
- The government must dutifully protect the welfare and safety of citizens. Equally, we urge the government not to use undue force on demonstrators expressing their views peacefully;
- The political associations wish to express their appreciation of the Committee for the Registration of Political Associations and the Approval of National Parties (CRPAANP) on how they conducted the registration, screening related activities of the political associations that lasted from 27 June 2022 to 6 November 2022 resulting in the approval of 9 associations who, together with the 3 existing national parties, will compete for a place among the next 3 parties to hold office in the next 10 years.
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The statement was signed by the leaders of the victorious 9 associations, namely: Ogaal, Waaberi, Horseed, Shacabka, Mideeye, Kaah, Hillaac, Barwaaqo, and Rejo.
