Members of parliament to vote in the first vote of its kind in decades amid fears that the election will be rigged.

Somalia’s presidential elections have been marred by allegations of bribery, with up to $50,000 said to have exchanged hands among members of parliament, Al Jazeera has learnt.

Senior diplomatic sources deployed in the region to ensure honest and fair election, have confirmed that the process of vote buying has been under way over the last few days.

It was hoped that the vote for a new president, the first of its kind in decades, would alter the political landscape of the nation and be a milestone in the war-ravaged country's quest to end two decades of violence, corruption and infighting.

However, the bribery allegations confirm fears of the election being rigged.

Earlier international diplomatic sources told Al Jazeera that “if MPs don’t vote with their conscience, this will continue the orgy of corruption”.

Al Jazeera’s Nazanine Moshiri, reporting from Mogadishu, said: “I have spoken to a senior diplomatic source as well as various MPs and people connected to the technical selection committee as well and they have told me that there is bribery going on all sides so many of the main candidates who are taking place in this election have been not only been offering money to MPs but some MPs has accepted that money.

Read and watch a video the complete story at Al Jazeera

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