President Mohamed Nasheed is on a four day holiday following the conclusion of the local council elections, reports Haveeru.
The President’s Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair claimed the president had worn through three pairs of shoes during a campaign tour of 100 islands, during which he delivered 130 speeches.
Nasheed will spend his break at Muleeage, Haveeru reported, and return to work on Sunday.
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(0)Former Maldivian Attorney General Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed is reportedly set to be appointed as the first female secretary-general of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
The Hindu, an India-based newspaper, today reported that Saeed, who has previously served as the Maldives’ attorney-general, is expected to take the position from India’s Sheel Kant Sharma once he completes his three year stint as SAARC secretary general later this month.
According to the report, unnamed diplomatic sources have suggested that the appointment comes as the organisation aims to focus on issues of women’s empowerment and maternal healthcare.
A spokesperson for SAARC was unavailable for comment at the time of going to press.
The appointment of a new secretary general is expected ahead of a summit to be held by the regional organisation in the Maldives later this year.
(0)Dislikes(0)The opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) took the lead in the local council elections this morning, as ballot boxes across the islands were tallied overnight. However the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) appear to have decisively won both Male’ and Addu City Councils, taking all but two seats in the former and every seat in Addu.
Police reported that incidents were generally minor and restricted to isolated outbursts on several islands due to the prevalence of ‘assisted’ voting for the elderly and blind. An exception was on Kela in Haa Alif Atoll, where police had to last night evacuate election officials and the ballot box to Hanimaadhoo before controlling a irate crowd.
“There was a misunderstanding between the Elections Commission and the people voting,” said Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam. “Some people may have gone there after the 4pm deadline and found they were unable to vote.”
Both major parties have expressed concern with the low voter turnout, while the DRP yesterday expressed particular frustration with the Elections Commission’s last minute decision to reallow an election for Addu City Council, following Supreme Court permission. Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali told Minivan News that the party has dissassembled its campaign team in Addu after the EC cancelled the election.
10:50 – Two-thirds of the ballot boxes (276) have been counted so far, with 141 remaining to be counted. Current tally:
DRP 375
MDP 343
Independent 132
JP 9
DQP 2
AP 10
GIP 1
12:50 – Haveeru reports issues with the ballot box on Baarah in Haa Alif Atoll, delaying preliminary results for the island.
Elections Commission Deputy President Ahmed Fayaz told Minivan News that many such issues had been reported to the Commission.
”The commission’s officials have been working since dawn yesterday, and it is possible for them to make mistakes,” he said. ”We have now sent a team to the island to resolve the issue.”
13:19 – DRP pulls further ahead as island votes come in, although vote % won’t be available until later in the day.
Of 288 boxes counted, 129 to go:
DRP 402
MDP 359
Independent 140
AP 10
JP 9
DQP 9
PA 2
GIP 1
2:15pm – Votes for Baarah are being recounted due to a mismatch between the number of ballots and votes cast, reports Haveeru. The Kela ballot box is currently being recounted, amid reports that over 600 people on the island may have been unable to vote due to deadline policies.
16:35 – Both major parties seem to have declared victory. Former DRP Deputy Leader Umar Naseer has passed around an SMS invitation declaring that a “Welcome to Blue Maldives” victory function, organised by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, will be held at the Artificial Beach in Male’ at 8:45pm this evening.
Meanwhile, jubilant MDP supporters have crowded into pickup trucks and are parading the city hooting and cheering.
17:15 – Preliminary results of 307 boxes counted:
DRP 440
MDP 369
Independent 153
AP 13
JP 9
DQP 3
PA 2
GIP 1
17:17 – The Elections Commission has said it may call a re-election in Kela after violence erupted last night when voting was closed. Haveeru reports that over 600 people were unable to vote by the deadline.
18:12 – Elections Commission confirms that temporary counts for almost all boxes have been completed across 188 islands and 400 polling stations, and are currently being faxed and emailed through to the EC to be tabulated.
Deputy Commissioner Ahmed Hassan Fayaz told Minivan News that the final results should be received around 11pm this evening, “although changes to the temporary results should be minor.”
“The temporary results suggest that MDP has won more seats in the city councils, while DRP has a clear majority in the island and atoll councils,” Fayaz said.
The percentage vote tally, rather than seat count, should be available later this evening or early tomorrow morning once tabulation is complete, which will give some insight into support for the major parties.
18:34 – Latest count:
DRP 449
MDP 381
Independent 164
AP 13
JP 8
DQP 4
PA 2
GIP 1
Rolling coverage will continue today until votes have been counted. Refresh the page for updates.
(0)Dislikes(0)The Maldives votes today in its first local council elections. Minivan News will provide rolling coverage throughout the day (scroll down).
Local Council Election Guide (English)
10:00 – The country’s ballot boxes opened from eight this morning without any major disruptions across the country and are expected to remain in use until 4:00pm this afternoon, according to Elections Commission (EC) President, Fuwad Thaufeeq.
Thaufeeq told Minivan News that there were no reports of delays or closures at any of the country’s polling stations, with an additional two ballot boxes opened in Trivandrum, India and Colombo, Sri Lanka, for Maldivian nationals overseas.
“All the [polling] stations were opened on time and many were staffed from about 45 minutes before operating to ensure they were fully ready,” he said. “We also have the two boxes in Sri Lanka and India that will also open between 8:00am and 4:00pm local time.”
Constituents wishing to take part in the elections will have until today’s 4:00pm deadline to queue up at one of the country’s polling stations to ensure they can select their chosen candidate, according to Thaufeeq. Any arrival after this deadline is expected to be turned away without being able to vote, the EC has said.
10:15 – The Maldives Police Service has said that it has received no major reports of major violence so far this morning or in the run up to the local council elections, despite fears about potential clashes between rival supporters.
Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said that despite some “little misunderstandings” at some island polling stations, there had been no major clashes.
“There has not been any violence so far today, yesterday or the day before that,” he said. “We are trying to work with the Elections Commission (EC) in regards to any problems, though there hasn’t been much confrontation.”
Shiyam said that certain “misunderstandings” had been reported to have occurred at some island-based ballot boxes, where confusion had arisen over whether one constituent was able to correctly see how he would be casting his vote.
“As someone was casing their vote, allegations were made that the constituent in question was blind, while others denied there was a problem,” he said.
10:30 – Police questioned a man in Villimale after he allegedly used his phone to photograph his ballot. Election officials are alert to the use of phone cameras at the ballot box, which can be used to show evidence that bought vote was made as demanded. Police were reportedly unable to find the photo on the man’s phone.
10:40 – Two Commonwealth Election Observers are working in Male’ and nearby islands, while two more are covering larger population hubs such as Kulhufushi.
The team includes Commissioner Florence Kebbie (National Election Commission of Sierra Leone), Zenaida Moya-Flowers (Chairperson of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum and Mayor, Belize City Council), Anuya Kuwar (Project Officer – Asia region, Commonwealth Local Government Forum) and Alison Pearman (Policy Officer, Political Affairs Division, Commonwealth Secretariat).
“We don’t normally observe local council elections, but the Elections Commission asked us. We’re not formally monitoring the election – we won’t be doing press releases or making public announcements, but we will produce a report for the Commonwealth Secretary General and this will like by passed to the Elections Commission,” explained Pearman.
The EC has said that 913 observers from local NGOs and political parties will be observing the election. 1179 applications were submitted.
12:15 – Fares-Maathoda in Gaaf Dhaal has reportedly suspended voting because of the number of elderly people voting with help of assistants.
12:20 – Miadhu has reported on some of the rhetoric adopted by politicians in the lead up to today’s voting, with rival parties being compared to diseases and “back breakers” as election fever heats up.
The paper reported Speaker of Parliament and Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) member Abdullah Shahid as claiming that the party offered “vaccination” against “yelllow fever” – yellow being the colour of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).
Majlis Speaker and DRP Council member, Abdullah Shahid said Saturday’s election provided an opportunity to cure voter disaffection with the serving government.
“I appeal to all people to take your family and vaccinate them against yellow fever on Saturday,” Shahid was yesterday reported as saying. “This rally will end our campaign for the upcoming elections. And likewise the elections will end the yellow fever epidemic for the whole of the Maldives,” he said.
Meanwhile MDP Parliamentary Group Leader ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik suggested that voters would not turn to the DRP, as they had already had their “backs broken” during the party’s previous innings. ‘Back breaking’ is a reference to allegations against a prominent opposition figure, who is alleged to have broken the back of a dissident under the former administration.
According to Miadhu, Moosa told attendees at an MDP campaign rally held yesterday at Male’s artificial beach that former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom had headed “an oppressive government” that he claimed “ruled tyrannically by abusing the rights of the people.”
Beyond MP wordplay and party rhetoric, Minivan News last week reported on what a number of the country’s most prominent parties saw as the key election issues.
13:30 – Aiman Rasheed, Projects Coordinator for NGO Transparency Maldives which is coordinating the domestic observation of the elections, has claimed that it continues to have a number of major concerns including the prevalence of ‘assisted’ voting, ongoing campaigning by parties within ballot areas, and low levels of voter education as to the process.
Rasheed told Minivan News that Transparency Maldives had particular concerns regarding public’s understanding how to vote in a such a complex election, and feared this would lead to many votes being invalidated, particularly in areas where multiple votes were required for island and council atolls.
“If people pick four instead of a required five candidates, then their vote is invalidated. It has to be just right,” he said. “[Transparency Maldives] anticipates quite a lot of invalid votes. In the general election – 2008 – only about one percent of votes were invalid. We are expecting a higher number this time.”
Rasheed added that there was also potential for the abuse of the assisted voting system, which is used to aid disabled or incapacitated constituents to attend the ballot.
“Assisted voting is given at the discretion of the Elections Commission (EC) officers, though we have been getting complaints from all over the country and police have also raised concerns,” he said.
According to Rasheed, although laws have been outlined over the provision of assistance and votes to constituents with mental illness or disabilities at the ballot box, many of the traits for defining these criteria in the country remain “subjective”, making enforcement difficult.
13:40 –Transparency predicts vote counting will begin at 5:30pm, after those still in the queue at 4:00pm are given the chance to vote. Initial results should be available after two hours (~7:30pm).
14:50 – Haveeru reports that several ballots on Baarah in Haa Alif Atoll have been destroyed after an ink bottle spilled on the ballots. The EC confirmed a request for more ballots to be sent to the island.
15:45 – Large crowds remain outside several voting centres in Male’, despite proximity to ballot closing.
16:30 – As polling comes to a close, some of the political parties have begun discussing early impressions from the polling.
Ahmed Haleem, spokesperson for the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), said that although polling appears to have gone relatively smoothly, he was not happy with voter turn-out within Male’, which he claimed had been “poor” – a major potential setback for the party.
According to Haleem, the ruling party was concerned that many in the electorate were not aware of the importance of the council elections, which meant that voter turnout in the city was not as high as islands across the country’s atolls.
“This is a big problem for the MDP, we have a large support base in Male’,” he claimed.
The party spokesperson also expressed concern at the decision to end polling by 4:00pm as opposed to later in the evening.
“People are not coming to vote by 4:00pm – a lot of people are still waiting outside the gate to vote, but they can’t get in now.”
16:46 – A number of islands have reported problems with assisted voting for disabled or impaired constituents, says Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam, with allegations that insiders from various parties may have been abusing the system to gain votes.
Despite these complaints, Shiyam added that police had not become involved in the matter as it was not believed to be sufficiently widespread or organised, leaving Elections Commission officers to deal with the matter.
Beyond some concerns over the assisted voting, Shiyam claimed that voting across the islands had remained peaceful during the day.
“So far, there has not been any big issues with violence,” he said.
15:09 – Ballots are closing as queues recede, and counting has begun for some islands. Preliminary results should be available in several hours.
17:52 – Preliminary result for Hulhuheniveiru, 52% MDP (Maizan Ali Maniku), 40.5% DRP (Ahmed Nizam).
18:00 – Preliminaryresult for Galolhu Dehkunu area T-05 ballot box, DRP leading 43% out of five candidates (Ibrahim Sujau).
18:27 – Total four ballot boxes counted, temporary results indicate 3 to MDP, 1 to DRP.
18:29 – Preliminary results for Male’ city council available shortly.
18:43 – Latest ballot box count: MDP 8, DRP 4, GIP 1, Independent 2
19:42 – Latest ballot box wins: MDP ahead with 16, DRP 9, Independent 3, GIP 1.
21:15 – Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali has said he remains confident the opposition party will have a positive feedback from the elections as more votes come in from the country’s island councils.
Thasmeen told Minivan News that despite not doing “too badly” in the Male’ council elections so far, he was disappointed at a last-minute decision by the Supreme Court allow the elections for the formation of a council to serve an Addu City.
Otherwise the party remained positive of success, he said.
“We have been getting feedback from the islands and so far it looks good,” he said. “We still are awaiting all the results from the island council that are slowly coming in and over the course of the night, we expect we will have a reasonable margin.”
In Male’, of four seats won by the DRP during the previous government election within the city, Thasmeen said he believed it would lose only one in the council elections; a decision he blamed on a DRP member running as an independent alongside an official party candidate.
According to the DRP leader, the major disappointment of the day had so far been felt in the controversial decision to once again allow elections for the Addu City that it had not been prepared for.
Thasmeen claimed it had reluctantly gone along with the decision of the courts, but was hindered by having disbanded its campaign team for Addu.
“It was clearly announced [the Addu elections] would not be today,” he said. “[The decision to hold them] has given the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) an advantage due to their larger finances. We should have had more time to allow constituents to return.”
21:21 – 50 percent of ballot boxes have been counted or are in process, according to Aiman Rasheed from Transparency Maldives.
“I think things have gone much better than we anticipated, although there have been issues that the Electoral Commission could have prevented,” he said.
Low voter turnout, Aiman suggested, was likely due to general apathy “as people don’t know what these councils are supposed to do or what their mandates are.”
21:31 – Complaints have delayed the counting of two ballot boxes in Dhaalu Atoll. Ballot box for Maavah in Laamu Atoll has resumed counting after temporary disruption.
Refresh this page for further updates as the day progresses
Download the Local Council Election Guide (English)
Credit: Analysis spreadsheet prepared by Aishath Aniya. Data sourced from Elections Commission.
(0)Dislikes(0)Local council elections will consolidate democracy, President Mohamed Nasheed said yesterday during a speech for Maldives National Day, marking the 451st anniversary of the Maldives gaining independence from Portuguese rule.
However, he said, democracy could not be consolidated without decentralising the country, which until now has been Male’ centric.
“This administration does not intend to centralize all the powers in the capital, and the country will not progress without relinquishing powers concentrated in Male’ for centuries,” Nasheed said.
Revolts occurring against governments in many countries in the Middle East was the result of suppressing people’s freedoms and liberties, he said.
Safeguarding the people’s freedom of expression, assembly and peaceful political activism was a prerequisite of sustainable national development, added the President.
Basic rights of the people and safeguarding these rights for future generations were central to the current political and socio-economic changes in the Maldives, the President said.
“The most important part of preservation of the new found freedoms and rights in the Maldives is redefining the national identity based on Islam, human rights, culture, and socio-economic progress of this country,” Nasheed said.
Nasheed also paid tribute to Mohamed Thakurufaanu, the National Day hero who restored the country’s independence after Portuguese rule.
(0)Dislikes(0)The Elections Commission has taken action to remove 29 candidates planning to stand in today’s local council elections following a Supreme Court ruling on their eligibility.
Haveeru reported that the decision was taken yesterday to cancel the candidates’ standing in the elections, but 11 of the names would still be appearing on ballot papers.
According to the report, polling station heads will strike out the invalidated names in the presence of each voter.
(0)Dislikes(0)Maldivian staff at the proposed Lithuanian ‘Blondes only’ resort will wear wigs, Olialia Brand Manager Lauryna Anuseviciut has confirmed in an interview with Associated Press.
Anuseviciute told AP that “staff who are not blond will wear a blond wig to make everyone look similar.”
Companies in the Maldives are required to employ at least 50 percent local staff, few of whom have blonde hair.
Plans for the resort are still at an infant stage, but early designs show the island will be shaped as a gigantic high-heeled shoe.
Anuseviciute insisted to AP that Olialia had already secured financing for the plan, however the Maldivian government says it has yet to issue a permit or even see a proposal.
(0)Dislikes(0)Amana Takaful Insurance has applied to become the fifth company to be listed on the Maldives Stock Exchange (MSE).
The Sri Lankan company was established in 1998 and pioneered the process of refunding the surplus at the end of each policy term. It has been active in the Maldives since 2003, providing insurance to government and non-government organisations.
Amana Takaful will be both the first Sharia-compliant company and the first foreign-owned company to be listed on the MSE, the exchange noted.
Other companies on the stock exchange include the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company Plc (MTCC), Bank of Maldives Plc (BML), State Trading Organization Plc (STO), and the Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC)
(0)Dislikes(0)India’s state-owned National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is examining the potential for solar projects in the Maldives.
The company is currently conducting a feasibility study within the islands, which it expects to complete within 3-4 months.
NTPC chairman and managing director Arup Roy Choudhury declined to offer specifics about the investment that India’s biggest power generator would potentially make in the island nation, until the completion of the study.
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