(Adds background on Madobe) By Hassan Yare BAIDOA, Somalia, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Somalia's parliament elected a new speaker on Wednesday to replace one ousted over his overtures to Islamist rivals defeated by government and Ethiopian troops during a two-week war in December. Members of parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of Justice Minister Sheikh Adan Mohamed Nuur "Madobe" who takes over from Sharif Hassan Sheikh Adan, voted out of office Jan 17. Adan's sacking drew international criticism that President Abdullahi Yusuf's government was missing a crucial post-war opportunity to become more inclusive in a country divided since the 1991 ouster of a dictator. Deputy Speaker Osman Elmi Boqore said Madobe won 154 votes, while runner-up Ibrahim Adan Hassan won 54. "I wish to congratulate the members of parliament who voted for me, including those who did not vote for me. I promise to be fair and just to all," Madobe told parliament. Parliament sources said the 50-year-old enjoys support from Yusuf, who arrived in Baidoa on Tuesday evening. Madobe is expected to resign from the Justice Ministry because Somali law does not allow him to hold the two posts at the same time. Madobe studied Islamic theology, and became a businessman dealing in livestock before entering politics in 1990. He comes from the same Digil & Mirifle clan as his predecessor who he lost out to in the initial vote for speaker held in Kenya. Former speaker Adan had close ties with Mogadishu businessmen who financed the Somalia Islamic Courts Council. He tried several times to strike peace deals between the government and the Islamists -- moves that infuriated the administration. The government, backed by troops and weapons from Ethiopia, drove out the Islamists who had controlled the capital Mogadishu and much of the south for six months. AFRICAN UNION FORCES The transitional government, which was not popularly elected, returned to Somalia in January 2005 after being formed in Kenya. As the government tries to cement political control of the country, African leaders are struggling to build an African Union peacekeeping force for Somalia, which would fill a security vacuum after Ethiopian troops leave. Ethiopia says its mission is complete and it wants the first AU units to deploy by mid-February. But an AU summit ended on Wednesday in Addis Ababa with a proposed peacekeeping force for Somalia still lacking firm commitments for thousands of troops. In Mogadishu, reaction to the plan was mixed. "We badly need the troops. This is a big failure by the African Union. ... We need good leaders in the AU. Once again Africans have failed to solve their own problems," said businessman Abdullahi Sheikh. But peace activist Abdullahi Mohamed Shirwa disagreed. "I feel there is no need for the foreign troops, we need reconciliation and consensus building among Somalis," he said. "The government needs to heal the nation. This is not the right time for a military intervention," he added. Many African nations are nervous about committing soldiers to one of the world's most dangerous countries where warlords and their gunmen ruled unchecked for 15 years. The dangers were underlined on Tuesday when a series of blasts rocked northern Mogadishu in an area of the capital where Ethiopian troops are based, security sources and residents said. Uganda, Nigeria and Burundi have pledged most of the troops so far, with an unknown number also committed by Ghana and Malawi. Zambia is considering a contribution. A senior Algerian official said his country would provide about 12 transport planes to airlift the troops. The European Union has released 15 million euros ($19 million) to finance the Somalia peacekeepers. Speaking in Baidoa, Prime Minister Gedi called on Tuesday for a state of emergency law recently passed by parliament to be implemented, citing the presence of technicals -- pick-up trucks mounted with heavy arms that are Somalia's version of tanks.
