Ahmed Omar Haji Hamarje, vice chairman of Somaliland’s opposition Wadani Party, has warned that if the presidential election is not held within the timeline stipulated by the commission, the Somaliland government will collapse.
In an interview with a local television station in Hargeisa on Sunday, Hamarje said that postponing the polls will deepen the violence in Las Anod, harming the entire region.
“I’m waiting for the commission to keep its promise of holding the election in nine months. Otherwise, Somaliland will suffer the same fate as Las Anod “According to Hamarje. “Adding even one more day to the voting schedule could result in more regions being like Las Anod.”
Hamarje further accused President Muse Bihi Abdi and Senate Speaker Saleban Mohamud Adan of orchestrating the Las Anod riots in order to postpone the election. He said that his party was preparing for presidential and union elections, while criticizing President Obama of being unprepared.
Hamarje was one of more than ten MPs detained at an anti-government protest in Hargeisa but later released.
Since it began on December 28, 2022, the violence in Las Anod has displaced over 185,000 people, killed over 200 people, and injured hundreds more. Hospitals have been devastated as well, resulting in a lack of medical care for those in need.
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