NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 6, 2008 - Somalia's former Prime Minister, Prof. Ali Mohamed Gedi, has formally announced his candidacy for presidential elections, which are scheduled to be held across the country in 2009.

Prof. Gedi, who resigned last October but retained his post as parliamentarian, said he is confident the Somali people will elect him to lead the country.

"I am a man who believes in progress," Gedi told reporters from his base in Nairobi, Kenya. "2009 is very near and the transitional federal government (TFG) has a lot of work to do. If the constitution is not implemented, we [ Somalia] will not reach democracy."

He stated that he is the first individual to announce his candidacy for the 2009   Somali presidential elections.

The former Somali prime minister urged the TFG to prepare the nation for democratic elections next year. He specifically highlighted the importance of a population census and the finalization of the federal constitution, which he argued would place Somalia on the correct path towards democracy.

Many people in Somalia and abroad believe that former Prime Minister Gedi lost his post due to alleged financial mismanagement and his failure to   implement a federal system in Somalia.

Gedi's government   could not   collect census data during his   three-year tenure as Somali premier and many suspect it is doubtful that the TFG will be able to collect such data during the remaining year in its mandate.

It is not clear how the Somali government will be able to host democratic elections nation-wide next year, especially in light of a violent insurgency in the capital Mogadishu, armed separatists in the northern region   of Somaliland and a weak government dependent on foreign financial and military aid.

Source: Garowe Online