FGS Names Deputy PM as Acting South West State President as It Consolidates Control

GOOBJOOG NEWS|MOGADISHU: The Federal Government of Somalia has escalated its intervention in South West State following a dramatic shift in power in Baidoa, appointing Second Deputy Prime Minister Jibril Abdirashid Haji Abdi as the Acting Leader of the region.

The appointment, made by Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, comes in the immediate aftermath of the ousting of former South West President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen, whose administration collapsed amid a prolonged standoff with Mogadishu.

Federal forces, backed by allied local fighters, have since taken full control of Baidoa, effectively ending Laftagareen’s grip on power. Reports indicate the former leader was flown out of the city to a neighbouring country on the same day—though this remains unconfirmed.

Under the new arrangement, Jibril Abdirashid is tasked with overseeing the administration in Baidoa during what the Federal Government describes as a “transitional phase.” His mandate includes stabilizing the region and steering it toward a planned one-person, one-vote election—an ambition long pushed by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud but resisted by sections of South West’s former leadership.

A high-level federal delegation led by Parliament Speaker Sheikh Aden Mohamed Nur Madoobe is already in the city, working to formalize the transition and lay the groundwork for the next phase of governance. President Hassan Sheikh is also expected to travel to Baidoa in the coming days, a move likely intended to reinforce federal authority and signal political backing for the new interim administration.

Villa Somalia’s decision to install a senior federal figure at the helm marks a significant shift in the balance of power between the centre and regional states. While the government frames the move as necessary to restore order and advance democratization, critics are likely to view it as a direct federal takeover of a member state.

Attention now turns to whether the interim leadership can maintain stability, manage competing political interests, and deliver on the promise of credible elections in a region that has long been a flashpoint in Somalia’s fragile federal system.