UN and AU holds meeting with Madobe over relationship with Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Somalia - The United Nations and the African Union Mission in Somalia held a meeting with firebrand Jubaland President Ahmed Madobe over his relationship with the federal government of Somalia just a few days to the country's much-anticipated polls.

Madobe, who liberated Kismayo from Al-Shabaab in 2012 has been at loggerheads with the Mogadishu administration and has often accused President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo of a plot to undermine his leadership especially in the troubled Gedo region in Jubaland.

And the meeting with the UN and AU comes just over a month after Madobe held a meeting with President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo in Mogadishu where states leaders agreed to have an improved clan-based electoral deal which will be affected from this month.

The stakeholders, however, want Madobe to drop some of his hard stance against Villa Somalia for smooth collaboration for the sake of millions of Somalis in Jubaland. Collaboration between FGS and federal member states topped the agenda, officials said.

Also, the team focused on early elections preparations and security in Jubaland, which is the worst hit by the Al-Shabaab menace. They also called for long-term reconciliation between Villa Somalia and Kismayo.

"Continuing their FMS leader meetings, African Union, EU_in_Somalia, IGAD Peace and UN reps e-met this week with Jubaland's Pres. Ahmed Islam 'Madobe' to encourage continued FGS-FMS collaboration; progress on election prep, including security; and longer-term reconciliation," UN said.

As part of the pre-election arrangement, Madobe called for the withdrawal of the Somali National Army [SNA] from the Gedo region, arguing that the region could only go for elections in absence of the soldiers. But to date, the soldiers continue to man sections of Jubaland.

The Jubaland leader believes that President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo is keen to impose his team on the people of Gedo within giving them a chance to pick leaders of their choice. Villa Somalia has often dismissed such claims as "fake news".

GAROWE ONLINE