This archive report was first published on 13 August 2019.
On the eve of Somalia's Jubbaland state elections, a group of 12 rival candidates has thrown the vote into uncertainty by announcing a parallel electoral commission and a list of 75 members of the local legislative assembly.
According to the Union of Jubbaland Presidential Candidates for Change, the list includes 21 representatives from the Kumade (Darood) clan, 19 from the Marehan, 10 from the Mirifle, and seven from the Harti clan, among others.
The move defies a warning by the United Nations and is seen as a challenge to the official poll agency, the Jubbaland Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (JIEBC), which has been accused of bias by the opposition group.
The opposition group, chaired by Ahmed Aabi Adan, alleges that JIEBC is working to secure victory for the incumbent federal President Sheikh Ahmed Islam 'Madobe'.
As the question of who conducts the polls remains a point of contention between rival candidates, the legitimacy of the elections hangs in the balance.
