Somalia's presidential candidates run as dual citizens

Somalia’s 275-member Lower House of parliament and the 54-member Upper House are set to elect the country’s ninth president since its independence in 1960.

Most Somalis have lived outside their country as refugees due to the civil war that hit Somalia since 1991.

The 18 presidential candidates are no exception as majority of them are residents of the United States and Canada where they acquired citizenship statuses.

Dual citizenship does not bar them from running for presidency so far as they have a Somali passport.

Besides President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, ex-President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, Mohamed Ali Nur and Jabril Ibrahim Abdulle, the rest of the candidates are reported to have dual citizenship.

Check out the list of dual citizenship holders below and their second countries.

• Fadumo Dayib – Canada
• Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke – Canada
• Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed – Canada
• Abdirahman Abdullahi Baadiyow – Canada
• Dr. Abdinasir Mohamed – United States
• Anab Dahir – United States
• Dr.Bashir Nur-Bidaar H Looyan – United States
• Abdirizak Omar Mohamed – United States
• Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed – United States
• Mohamud Ahmed Nur Tarsan – United Kingdom
• Abdirahman Farole – Australia
• Said Abdullahi Dani – Denmark
• Yassin Mahi Mallin – Sweden

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