ALGIERS: An Algerian court on Monday sentenced three former contenders for the country's presidency to 10 years in jail for corruption, a judicial source said Monday.
Businesswoman Saida Neghza, former minister Belkacem Sahli and Abdelhakim Hamadi were among about 70 people found guilty of corruption. Others were jailed for between five and eight years.
The three had all wanted to stand in a presidential election in September last year but their candidacies were rejected and they were charged with trying to buy support for their bids. Three of Neghza's sons were among the defendants.
The majority of the accused were members of local councils accused of giving their electoral signatures to the contenders in exchange for cash payments.
After the sentence, Neghza insisted she was innocent and had not bought any endorsement.
She called on President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who won the election in a landslide, to “study the case” which she said was “empty”.
Neghza has pointed to a 2023 public letter in which she blasted the state over obstacles including fines imposed on business owners as the source of her legal troubles.
Those wishing to run for the presidency are required to gather 600 signatures from elected officials or 50,000 signatures from constituents registered to vote.
Prosecutors announced in August that 68 people had been arrested on charges of “buying signatures” for three presidential hopefuls.
