Somali Defense Minister Says Only Two Parties Compete for Somalia: Al-Shabaab and JSP

MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Somalia’s Defense Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi has drawn criticism after saying that only two parties are competing for control of the country – Al-Shabaab and the ruling Justice and Solidarity Party (JSP) – in remarks that a prominent regional political and security analyst said appeared intended to dismiss the political opposition but risked legitimizing jihadist violence while delegitimizing peaceful democratic competition.

“He said it jokingly but there is reason to believe he is dead serious,” Rashid Abdi, a political and security analyst with Nairobi-based Sahan Research, said on Tuesday.

Abdi said the minister’s remarks echoed comments made months earlier by his deputy.

“Some months ago his deputy said something similar. He said only two parties were allowed to carry weapons in Mogadishu — Al-Shabaab and the government,” he added.

According to Abdi, such rhetoric carries wider political implications.

“The rhetorical legitimisation of jihadist violence and delegitimisation of peaceful democratic opposition are all symptoms of a system that is now politically bankrupt,” he said.

In his statement, Fiqi said that apart from Al-Shabaab and the ruling Justice and Solidarity Party, “the rest are just bread,” dismissing all other political actors.

The remarks come as political tensions between Somalia’s federal government and the opposition, led by former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and other former senior federal officials, continue to intensify. The two sides have increasingly traded sharp public criticism through the media amid a deepening political dispute.

The latest exchange underscores the widening political divide in Somalia as disagreements between the federal government and the opposition continue to dominate public debate alongside the country’s broader security challenges posed by Al-Shabaab.

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