By Hassan Adan
Somalia’s House of the People has begun the process of electing a new Speaker after Acting Speaker and First Deputy Speaker Saadiya Yasin Haji Samatar on Sunday appointed a nine-member committee to oversee the election, following the departure of Sheikh Adan Mohamed Nur (Adan Madobe) from the post.
In an official decree dated Aug. 2, Acting Speaker Saadiya said the committee would organize and supervise the election in accordance with the Provisional Constitution and the House’s Rules of Procedure.
The committee is tasked with receiving nominations, verifying candidates, preparing the electoral process and announcing the final results.
The committee is chaired by MP Abdirizak Omar Mohamed and includes eight other lawmakers representing different parliamentary committees and political groupings.
The move formally launches the race to elect the next Speaker of the Lower House, one of Somalia’s most influential constitutional offices, which presides over parliamentary sittings, oversees legislative business and becomes acting President if both the President and the Speaker of the Upper House are unable to perform their duties.
The vacancy arose after Adan Madobe resigned from the speakership following his election as President of South West State last month.
Under Somalia’s parliamentary procedures, First Deputy Speaker Saadiya Yasin assumed the role of Acting Speaker pending the election of a successor.
The House leadership is expected to announce a timetable for candidate registration, campaigning and voting in the coming days.
Members of Parliament will elect the new Speaker through a secret ballot.
The election is expected to attract several senior lawmakers seeking to lead the 275-member House of the People at a time when Parliament is considering key legislation linked to constitutional implementation, electoral reforms and federal governance.
Adan Madobe was elected Speaker in April 2022 after securing a parliamentary majority in a closely watched vote, marking his second term in the position after previously serving as Speaker between 2007 and 2010.
The Speaker of the House of the People is the third-highest constitutional office in Somalia after the President and the Speaker of the Upper House and plays a central role in steering legislation, supervising parliamentary committees and representing the Lower House in national affairs.
