Muscat: Omani government has warned candidates in the upcoming Shura Council elections not to buy votes, warning of stiff penalties.
A three year jail-term and a fine of more than 3,000 riyals (Dh28,620 would be imposed on any candidate who promises cash or other kind of (reward) in return for a vote.
An official at the Ministry of Interior told Gulf News that the penalty was introduced to crack down on vote buying. The official said very few cases of vote buying were registered in the previous elections.
During the elections of 2011, the penalty was a one year jail-term and a fine of 1,000 riyals.
Two of the current Shura members were charged for buying votes in 2012, but the case was later dropped by a court due to insufficient evidence. The case was launched by voters who alleged to have been paid by the candidates for their votes. According to a local media report, some candidates paid cash between 50 and 150 riyals to voters in the previous election.
Some other candidates even sacrificed goats for needy families casting votes for them.
Most of those candidates who bribed voters were reported to be businessmen and wealthy individuals. Such candidates hired dozens of agents and paid them handsomely to buy votes.
Meanwhile, campaigns for the next election continue nationwide using ad campaigns and social media to attract voters.
Khalifa Al Kalbani, a teacher and Shura candidate from Ibri province, told Gulf News that he put signs in different areas in the province, and started a major campaign on social media such as Facebook, as well as mobile messaging services like WhatsApp.
“I have allocated more than 3,000 riyals for the campaign”, said Al Kalbani.
Seventy-eight candidates vying for seats in Oman’s Shura council have withdrawn from the elections slated for October citing personal reasons, according to the Ministry of Interior.
The number of candidates still in the race stands at 596, including 20 women.
Dhofar is the governorate with the highest number of candidates at 126, followed by Dhakliyah with 77, Muscat with 70, South Batinah with 61 and North Batinah with 60.
The rest of the candidates come from other parts of the country.
Of the registered candidates, 64 per cent belong to the 30-44 age group. In terms of education, 38.1 per cent of the candidates have cleared secondary school, 36.6 per cent are university graduates and 2.8 per cent hold PhDs
Under Omani law, candidates running for the Shura Council must be Omani by birth, be at least 30 years old, and not be involved in felony crimes.
The number of eligible voters in the elections stands at 600,000
