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MOGADISHU, 25 October 2026 Somalia’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Hassan Macalin, said that the opposition’s decision to challenge constitutional amendments in court showed growing confidence in the rule of law, and said the government would defend its position before the Supreme Court.
Former President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed has filed a case with the Supreme Court challenging the procedure used to approve amendments to the constitution on 11 October.
Speaking on the Miizaan Podcast on Sunday, Macalin said the government was pleased that the opposition had chosen the legal route.
“We were very happy when we read it,” he said.
Macalin said opposing the government was a right guaranteed by the constitution, and that any opposition figure was entitled to object, reject decisions or express their views.
“Using the rights the constitution gives them ... we are truly very happy about that,” he said.
He said the case came at a time when opposition groups had been distancing themselves from the constitution, and that their return to it through the courts was an encouraging development.
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“It gives us confidence in the supremacy of the law and in the judiciary itself,” he said. “It encourages us.”
According to Macalin, the Supreme Court referred the case to the Attorney General, who in turn forwarded it to the Federal Parliament, the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, and the Independent Constitutional Review Commission. The case is currently with those institutions, he said.
Macalin said the amendments had been prepared by the government, approved by the federal parliament and handled by the responsible institutions, and that the government would defend the process through its lawyers.
“We will defend ourselves through the law,” he said. “We abide by the law just as everyone abides by the law.”
Macalin referred to an earlier legal dispute over elections in Galmudug state, which went before the courts, but said it could not be compared with a challenge to the federal constitution.
He said he hoped more citizens would place their trust in the law rather than turn to other means that could harm the country’s statehood, and that the government itself must act within the constitution, with all sides submitting to the supremacy of the law.