AMISOM head hails Somalia for polls date announcement

Amisom chief Francisco Madeira has saluted the Somali people following the elections date announcement Sunday after the conclusion of the National Leadership Forum in Mogadishu.

Madeira said Amisom would with the people of Somalia in ensuring peace and stability during the elections period which is set to start from September.

“AMISOM will use its resources to support the people of Somalia and ensure that the Federal Indirect Electoral Implementation Team (FIEIT) carries out a credible and transparent process that will result in a new parliament, speaker and president for Somalia,” Ambassador Madeira said.

The FIEIT announced Sunday members of the Upper House members will be elected on September 25th while those of the Lower House will be elected from September 24th to October 10, 2016. Both the Lower and Upper Houses will be sworn in on October 20 and thereafter elect the Speaker on October 25, 2016. This will pave way for the election of the President on October 30th.

The Amisom head called on the people of Somalia to ‘take advantage of the electoral schedule to fully participate in the election of a new parliament that will be a foundation for the next poll in 2020 when one-person one-vote system will be fully implemented.’