Mogadishu (Somalia Today) – Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud lost one of his most senior political allies on Wednesday after the secretary-general of his ruling party resigned, accusing the president of “one-man rule” and exposing widening divisions over the constitution, elections, and federalism.
Abdirahman Mohamed Hussein Odowaa stepped down as secretary-general of the Justice and Solidarity Party (JSP) and also quit the party, in a move that marks a setback for Mohamud as he presses ahead with disputed political reforms.
A sitting member of parliament and a former interior minister during Mohamud’s first term, Odowaa had been one of the most senior figures in the president’s political camp.
In a resignation statement issued on Wednesday, he said he had reached the decision after a prolonged and deepening disagreement with Mohamud, who also chairs the party.
“The president has made decision-making in the country and the party something that begins and ends with him alone,” Odowaa said.
He accused Mohamud of rejecting dissenting views, refusing to consult his political team, and disregarding the advice of state institutions.
The resignation comes at a sensitive moment for the president, who is facing growing opposition over constitutional changes approved by parliament earlier this month and over his handling of relations with federal member states.
Election dispute
Odowaa said one of the main areas of disagreement was the process used to amend Somalia’s constitution.
He said he had tried to persuade Mohamud to reconsider a course that he believed was “driving the Somali people apart” and weakening principles tied to unity, cohesion, and federalism.
The two men also differed over the electoral model.
“The president insisted on creating an electoral system whose result he can control,” Odowaa said.
He argued that any future election should rest on agreement among Somalia’s political stakeholders, saying the country remained vulnerable to political conflict and repeated social breakdown.
The dispute goes to the heart of Somalia’s current political crisis.
Mohamud has championed a shift away from the clan-based indirect system that has long shaped Somali elections, presenting it as part of a move towards one-person, one-vote politics.
But critics say the constitutional changes were pushed through without sufficient national consensus and could strengthen the presidency while delaying elections.
Odowaa’s break gives added weight to those concerns because it comes from within the president’s own political structure rather than from the opposition alone.
Federal tensions
The departing party chief also criticised what he described as Mohamud’s policy towards federal member states.
He said he strongly opposed any effort to weaken the regional administrations, calling them “the symbol and second pillar” of Somalia’s federal order and an essential part of the country’s political foundation.
That language echoed complaints already raised by several federal states that have accused Mogadishu of concentrating power at the centre.
Puntland said in March 2024 that it would no longer recognise the federal government until disputed constitutional changes were approved through a nationwide referendum.
Jubaland later suspended ties with Mogadishu after a dispute over regional elections.
More recently, South West State also severed ties with the federal government, accusing Mogadishu of interfering in its affairs and trying to undermine regional authority.
Laftagareen, the South West president, also resigned as a deputy chairman of the JSP, followed by other senior party figures linked to the region.
Odowaa’s departure, therefore, suggests that the dispute is no longer confined to tensions between Villa Somalia and regional leaders, but has now spread deep into the president’s own camp.
Travel restrictions
Odowaa also used his resignation to criticise what he described as repeated restrictions on the movement of Somali citizens and lawmakers.
He said he had strongly objected to cases in which individuals were prevented from travelling inside or outside the country.
In particular, he said blocking a national lawmaker with legal immunity from travelling amounted to “a legal abuse for which no justification can be found”.
He described such actions as a violation of parliamentary independence and human dignity.
His remarks pointed to a broader complaint among government critics that the state is increasingly using security powers in political disputes.
Odowaa said he and the president had now parted political ways after a long alliance.
He added that he would pursue “a different political direction” and work with those who shared a commitment to Somali unity and national cohesion.
Warning signs
The JSP was launched in May 2025 as a vehicle for Mohamud’s reform agenda and as a platform for the country’s transition to party politics and direct elections.
Its creation was meant to project unity and discipline around the president’s political programme.
Less than a year later, the resignation of its secretary-general raises new questions over how much support that programme still commands within the ruling camp.
The timing also carries wider significance in Somalia, where disputes over mandates and election rules have previously spilled into security crises.
In 2021, a controversial term extension triggered clashes in Mogadishu between rival security factions before lawmakers reversed the move under pressure.
That episode remains a warning of how quickly constitutional disputes can destabilise a political system already under strain.
For Mohamud, the loss of Odowaa is not just a personal or organisational setback.
It is a public sign that resistance to his constitutional and electoral agenda is now coming not only from opposition figures and regional leaders, but also from senior officials who were once at the centre of his political project.
In a system where alliances can shift quickly and symbolism matters heavily, the resignation of the ruling party’s secretary-general is likely to deepen the perception that the president is becoming more politically isolated at a time when he most needs consensus.
