Somalia’s opposition on Tuesday said that they will boycott the ongoing parliamentary elections, citing allegations of widespread fraud and manipulation, days after a number of candidates said they have been rejected from running for seats.
Members of the Council of Presidential Candidates held a meeting and issued a statement and warned that it will not standby idly while the government of President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo continues a bold fraud in the election process.
Similar warnings had led to skirmishes between rival factions of the army in the capital Mogadishu in April this year.
The opposition parties claimed that the traditional elders representing clans were not given role in the process, and further argued that soldiers voted in a number of seats as delegates.
Government has not immediately commented on the claims of the opposition council, which have come days after the president travelled to Qatar to receive financial support for his re-election bid.
