BELEDWEYNE—Hirshabelle State Vice President Yusuf Hagar Dabageed has ruled out working with President Ali Abdullahi Hussein Guudlaawe if Guudlaawe is re-elected to lead the federal member state.

Speaking in an interview, Dabageed said he would not resign from his position but would refuse to cooperate with Guudlaawe if he secures another term as Hirshabelle president.

His remarks came a day after the Justice and Solidarity Party (JSP) endorsed Guudlaawe as its candidate for the Hirshabelle presidential election.

“The JSP issue and who was given what does not concern us. It concerns the person who gave it and the person who received it. But we, the people of Hirshabelle, are part of whatever decision the people of Hirshabelle make,” Dabageed said.

Dabageed said the Hiiraan community would hold a consultative meeting in Beledweyne to deliberate on the political developments following Guudlaawe’s endorsement. He said the gathering was expected to produce a unified position on the emerging political dispute.

The vice president also dismissed reports that Hiiraan residents were seeking to withdraw from Hirshabelle State. He said the community remained committed to the state-building process but maintained that its principal grievance was what it considers the denial of a five-year period of leadership that Hiiraan representatives say was agreed as part of the state’s political arrangements.

The dispute adds to growing political tensions within Hirshabelle ahead of the state’s leadership elections, with divisions over power-sharing and the political representation of Hiiraan continuing to shape the region’s political landscape.