Las Anod, Somalia — Lawmakers in Somalia’s North-Eastern State allege they received counterfeit money from candidates during Sunday’s regional presidential election, sparking a bribery scandal.
The claims follow Sunday’s vote in Las Anod, where Abdulkadir Firdhiye was elected as President of the newly formed North-Eastern State.
Several MPs say some presidential and vice-presidential candidates gave out large sums of fake money to influence voting outcomes.
The money, often called “sooryo,” is traditionally offered to lawmakers by candidates hoping to secure their support during the elections.
A lawmaker said half the money he received from a candidate turned out to be fake, resembling counterfeit U.S. currency.
“Half of the money I got from the candidate I voted was fake,” said an MP, requesting anonymity for safety reasons.
Vote-buying is widely reported in Somali elections, but using counterfeit money raises new legal and ethical questions in the political system.
Lawmakers say this damages electoral integrity and are calling for accountability and possible criminal investigations into the source of the fake funds.
Neither the North-Eastern State nor Somalia’s Federal Election Commission has issued a statement or launched a formal investigation.
The election was already controversial amid tensions with Puntland and Somaliland over territorial claims under North-Eastern State jurisdiction.