AFRICA : SOMALIA : NEW PRESIDENT MOHAMUD ELECTED

CISA NEWS REPORT:
Somalia-new-president
MOGADISHO, September 11, 2012 (CISA) -Somali parliamentarians made history on Monday September 10 when they elected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to the country’s top post in the first presidential elections held in the country in over two decades.
Mohamud defeated former Transitional Federal Government President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed in the second round of voting, 190 to 79.
Ahmed had the lead in the first round of voting with 64 votes. Mohamud followed with 60 votes, while former Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali had 30 and Abdulqadir Osoble Ali had 27.
After the first round, Abdiweli Mohamed Ali and Abdulqadir Osoble Ali dropped out of the running, leaving Ahmed and Mohamud to battle it out in the second round.
Lawmakers voted at the Police Academy in Mogadishu, where 22 of the original 25 candidates competed after Hussein Khalif Jama, Bashir Nur Hassan and Abdirahman Abdishakur withdrew their candidacy.
At the opening of the session, Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Sheikh Osman Jawari announced that 271 out of 275 members of parliament were in attendance, after 20 new lawmakers were sworn in before voting started.
According to Sabahi Mogadishu-based political analyst Ahmed Mohamud said that Somalia is witnessing a moment of great significance. “After 21 years of war, chaos and suffering, we are witnessing today an historic event, as democratic presidential elections take place inside the country for the first time in decades. Today, Somalia is entering a new era and I hope the election of a new president is a good omen for Somalia.”
SHARED FROM CISA NEWS

Comments