President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has announced that Somalia has officially left the transitional constitutional period, following the completion of the national constitution.
In a speech, the president said that Somalia had been in a transitional regime for a long time based on a transitional constitution, but that phase had ended today. He noted that this step meant that the country had a complete legal basis that guided the work of government institutions and the direction of national politics.
He described the constitution adopted in 2012 as an important pillar for the reconstruction of statehood, but said that it was transitional and needed to be completed.
According to him, this transitional period had affected politics, the economy and government institutions, with many disputes over the powers of the federal government and the state governments, and it was also difficult to fully establish the country’s judicial system and financial system. He said that the completion of the constitution now clarifies the structure of government and the distribution of powers.
The President also stressed that any future political disputes would be resolved through constitutional means, rather than through extra-constitutional political agreements. He said that the constitution is a social contract that limits the power of politicians and sets the rules for governing the country.
Speaking about the role of parliament, the President said that parliamentarians had taken on a historic responsibility in completing the constitution, after a long period of national debate and consultation. He added that the ratification of the constitution was conducted in an open manner with the public and the media watching live.
However, some opposition politicians who had previously expressed concerns about the process of reviewing the constitution, the President called on them to accept the outcome and uphold the new constitution, saying that any changes in the future could be made through the constitutional process itself.
