Somaliland opposition leader Cirro wins in presidential election, beating incumbent

By Ibrahim Umar,

Kanempress News,

20th, November,2024

Opposition leader in Somaliland, Abdirahman Cirro has defeated incumbent president Muse Bihi Abdi in last week’s election.

The chairman of Somaliland electoral commission, Musa Hassan said Cirro, leader of the Opposition Wadani party won 64% of the vote against Bihi’s 35%.

Hassan said this on Tuesday, setting up a handover of power as the breakaway Somali region pushes for global recognition.

Somaliland has had de facto self-rule since declaring independence from Somalia in 1991, but has not been recognised by any country, restricting access to international finance and its six million people to travel.

In a televised address, Cirro said “This election is not a win or loss for the candidates. It was an election of unity and fraternity and pushing ahead the Somaliland nation”.

At a strategic location at the juncture of the Indian Ocean and Red Sea, Somaliland vuews international recognition as being within reach after signing a preliminary deal with landlocked Ethiopia in January, wi would grant a strip of land on its coast in exchange for recognition.

Somaliland is also hopeful that the incoming U.S. President-elect Donald Trump will be favourable to its cause.

Several leading Africa policy officials from Trump’s first term have voiced support for its recognition.

The breakaway region has enjoyed a comparative period of peace since achieving autonomy three decades ago, just as Somalia plunged into a civil war from which it has yet to emerge.

As Cirro signalled broad support for the proposed pact with Ethiopia, his commitment to implementing it is not clear.

Some analysts suspect Cirro could be more open to dialogue with Somalia’s government, which opposes the agreement.

The deal has strained Somalia’s relations with Ethiopia, a major contributor towards a peacekeeping force in fighting Islamist militants, and drawn Somalia’s government closer to rivals, Egypt and Eritrea.

Presidents of Somalia and neighbouring Djibouti, whose relations with Somaliland were also soured under Bihi, congratulated Cirro on his election victory.

Ethiopia’s foreign ministry also sent a congratulatory message to Cirro.

“Congratulations to the newly elected President of Somaliland… and to the brotherly people of Somaliland for their political maturity,” Djibouti’s president, Ismail Omar Guelleh, wrote on X.

In his message, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud committed to ongoing reconciliation talks, which he said were focused on preserving the unity of Somalia.