Somalia's dictator must stew in his own juice

Somali leaders announced on Sunday they had struck a deal to wrap up parliamentary elections by February 25, after repeated delays that have threatened the stability of the troubled country.

The agreement was reached after several days of talks hosted by Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble with state leaders to try to defuse a bitter political crisis.

Roble and Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, better known by his nickname Farmajo, have long been at loggerheads over the long-delayed elections, with fears their squabbling could erupt into violence.

The long-running dispute between the two leaders erupted again last month when Farmajo suspended Roble, the man he had himself chosen as premier in September 2020.

Roble has insisted that Farmajo restore his powers before the elections can resume, and accused the president of using the armed forces to exert influence over the process.

As various crises play out, fighters from the Al-Qaeda-linked Al-Shabaab are continuing to wage deadly attacks, and last month raided a town near the capital.

When veteran Farmajo was elected president of Somalia in February 2017, supporters hoped he would provide stability in a failed state notorious for corruption and extremism.

But less than four years later, Somalia was plunged into a political crisis when the president extended his mandate without holding elections.

Farmajo was elected president by MPs in a converted aircraft hangar after a six-month voting process marred by widespread allegations of vote-buying and corruption. He has been accused of meddling in several state elections by attempting to place his allies in power.

In April 2021, parliament extended Farmajo's term after a failure to agree on terms for new elections, setting off an unprecedented constitutional crisis and street battles in Mogadishu.

One rival described him as a "dictator" who wanted to stay in power by force.

Farmajo, whose term as president ended almost a year ago, faced calls from opposition leaders to vacate his office and for him to face an investigation into his actions.