Tag: Maldivian Democratic Party

Adhaalath Party blames vote-splitting and bribery for poor elections result

The Adhaalath Party has today said that it lost many seats it ought to have won in the Majlis elections due to bribery and undue influence from competing candidates.

“We saw it both from the ruling party and opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) but we really did not want to buy votes –  instead we tried to change the way people think,’’ party Spokesperson Ali Zahir told Minivan News.

After fielding 12 candidates in Saturday’s polls, the religious party saw just a single MP elected to the 18th People’s Majlis – Anara Naeem for Makunudhoo constituency in Haa Dhaal atoll.

“It was really sad that a lot of money transactions were involved in it, it was an obstacle to electing the most capable person to the parliament.’’

Senior members of the MDP have themselves noted the use of similar techniques in Saturday’s poll – pointing the finger at coalition parties – while civil society and international observers have expressed alarm at such practices.

“It wasn’t the best results, or the results we expected,’’ Zahir told Minivan News today. “There are many reasons behind the loss.’’

Zahir said that one of the many reasons was the decision by the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) to give party tickets to candidates to contest in constituencies that Adhaalath had taken.

“It made the people divide their votes which the coalition should have got,’’ he said.

He said that the party had not started discussion on the issue with its, unofficial, coalition partners.

Following Adhaalath’s exclusion from the coalition’s parliamentary election plans, PPM Deputy Leader Abdul Raheem Abdulla told the press that the party was not “an official partner of the Progressive Coalition.”

Adhaalath was excluded from the governing coalition’s seat allocation, which eventually allocated 30 seats to the PPM, seven to the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA), and 28 to the Jumhooree Party (JP).

After failed negotiations with the JP in February, JP leader Gasim Ibrahim slammed the Adhaalath Party’s decision to contest in JP-reserved constituencies.

“Their actions are not in the general interest, in the name of Adhaalath (justice) they are doing everything in the wrong way,” said Gasim. “We gave them four seats. They did not accept it.”

Both Gasim and President Abulla Yameen have admitted that vote-splitting detracted from the size of the Progressive Coalition’s margin of victory.

Zahir today said that the workload of the senior party members had prevented the further discussion of the result within the party’s ranks, noting that talks with the government may follow such analysis.

He said that the party believed it had still made progress compared to the 2009 elections result – in which the party won no seats.

“Adhaalath Party is very different from all the other parties that contested in the parliament election – Adhaalath Party is a party that had to start from the bottom,” said Zahir.

“We will not stop our political activities and be silent,’’ he said. “We will compete in all the future elections and work to get better results.’’

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Majlis election: Nasheed calls for MDP restructuring after election defeat

Former President Mohamed Nasheed has called for new leadership within the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) following defeat in what he described as an “unfair” but accepted parliamentary election.

“I request new people to come and run the party,” Nasheed told the media today.

The party’s figurehead said he will continue to serve the party in the future and hopes that members of the party would make clear his role.

“I want new people to come forward to run the party. But I will not go away from the party, I will always remain in doing party work,” he added.

Nasheed, a co-founder of MDP and it’s first chairperson, was elected as the President of Maldives in the first democratic election in 2008.

The position of both president and vice president of the party remain vacant after party president Dr Ibrahim Didi and VP Alhan Fahmy were removed in a no-confidence vote in April 2012. Nasheed said today that a new party president should be elected soon.

“It is important for the party to restructure with these new results and with new people and go forward fast,“ he said.

Commenting on the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives’ (PPM) comments about reforming the MDP, Nasheed said that the work done by all parties in the Maldives needed reform.

“If PPM says that, it should be an inspiration for us. I believe when parties tell each other to strengthen their functioning, it must be accepted,” Nasheed said.

The function of holding the government accountable would be difficult without a majority, he noted, but it would still be carried out by the MDP in other forms such as questioning state institutions and bringing issues to the attention of the public.

“We did hope for a majority. I was hoping for around 45 seats. Not winning the election was a great loss for us. But I don’t think the result is such a loss that we should be so worried that we stop our work and become weak.”

“The MDP will remain as a big party, will hold rallies, give speeches, take trips, will say whatever has to be said politically at anytime. The MDP will protest, MDP will raise their voice over issues. MDP will carry out peaceful political activity?” Nasheed continued.

An official party statement issued today said that the party hopes its members will remain in reforming the country, and assured that the elected candidates of the party will remain in “preventing the country from going off track” and in reforming the judiciary.

“The MDP will always go forward in the path shown by the members and supporters of the party, in ways which are most beneficial for the country,” the MDP press statement read.

Parliamentary Elections

The reasons for losing the election previously suggested by members of the MDP leadership were echoed by Nasheed today

He said the defeat was a result of multiple factors, including undue influence, fear, money, candidates, policies, campaign budget shortages, and a lack of confidence in the election.

Nasheed suggested that expelling employees from companies with government shares and government positions also had a negative impact on the results.

“The voter turnout was very low in many areas. I believe among these reasons are removing Elections Commission members, and lack of confidence in the election from the members of the public,” Nasheed said.

Criticising the Supreme Court’sremoval of the Elections Commission (EC) president and vice president a few days ahead of the parliamentary elections, Nasheed said that such an election will be “very difficult to be considered fair”.

He said that it was a display of power to the public and it resulted in a low voter turnout, as many people believed the election would not make a difference.

“We believe this is not a fair transparent election because of that. I am not saying that things didn’t go well on election day. I’m not saying that we don’t generally accept the election.”

He also noted that the leadership of any party and the those involved in it should take responsibility for the victories and losses.

Commenting on the leadership’s responsibility for the defeat, Nasheed said that negligence of leaders should be accepted when faced with a failure, but that there had been no such negligence to a level which required going into detail and pointing fingers.

Congratulating President Abdulla Yameen for achieving “a great victory”, Nasheed called on him to lead and work with the MDP in reforming the judiciary and sustaining the democratic system.

“We hope that our members will do substantial work in the parliament as an opposition party. We believe there is a lot of work that has to be done through the People’s Majlis.”

“I hope the government will use their parliament majority with care, that they will not take our members to court, and that these members will not have to face extraordinary obstacles.”

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Majlis elections: Undue influence, bribery, and disilussionment led to losses, says MDP

Senior members of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) have said that bribery and people losing faith in elections may have been responsible for the party’s loss in yesterday’s election.

While the preliminary results are to be announced by the Elections Commission (EC) tonight, results reported by the media indicate that the MDP have won less than 30 percent of seats (22 – 25 seats) while the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) has taken approximately 39 percent of the seats (33 seats).

Along with the seats of the PPM’s coalition partners – including Gasim Ibrahim’s Jumhooree Party (JP), who reportedly won 14 seats – President Abdulla Yameen’s government appears to have won the approximately 65 percent of the seats in the People’s Majlis.

MDP Chairperson MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik and MDP parliamentary group leader MP Ibrahim ‘Ibu’ Solih  – both of whom reclaimed their seats yesterday – expressed discontentment over the party’s overall performance.

“There are a number of constituencies from which the results we got really surprised the MDP. This includes Gaafu Alif, Gaafu Dhaalu and Haa Alif atolls. The results we got from these areas are not the ones we expected or hoped for,” said Hinnavaru member Ibu.

He noted that the party was not satisfied with the results in Malé City, and that while Addu City’s results were largely as expected by the party, losing MP Ilyas Labeeb’s seat was a surprise.

Meanwhile Ibrahim ‘Ibra’ Ismail – who lost in yesterday’s Machangolhi Dhekunu poll – said that the results did not surprise him as much.

“I believe the election is a farce – while there was a free vote, it was not a fair vote. Government influences were used, voters were threatened, and people were bribed openly –  I noticed this particularly in my constituency.” He said.

Ibra led the drafting of the 2008 democratic constitution in the the constitutional assembly and later served as an advisor to President Mohamed Nasheed.

When the party seemed divided over participating in the election after the Supreme Court sentenced the independent EC members, Ibra revealed that he had supported a boycott just as had former President Nasheed.

“I said at the [MDP] national council meeting as well, it is meaningless to hold an election without addressing those issues. I supported an election boycott until the playing field was leveled. Without it the people’s will cannot be expressed,” said Ibra, stating that he had predicted a low number of seats even at that time.

Undue influence and democratic disillusion

Ibra’s concerns regarding bribery and undue influence by the government and businessmen was echoed by other MPs, with Moosa describing this influence as “huge”.

“In some islands we lost with very small difference because people’s jobs were threatened by businessmen who have influence over them. People were afraid. The government also used their powers and influence,” said the MP for Hulhu Henveiru.

Local NGO Transparency Maldives has today said that “issues of money politics threatens to hijack [the] democratic process” in the Maldives.

While this was a major issue of concern among all parties, parliamentary group leader Ibu also observed that “there are constituencies where the candidates have not put in as much effort as they should have.”

‘Ibra’ Ismail stated that the low turn out could have affected the number of seats won by the MDP, as it is likely that many pro-MDP people did not take part in the election.

While no official voter turnout has yet been announced, the EC has noted that it was very low. Some estimates put turnout as low as 65 percent compared to over 88 percent during the last presidential elections.

“It is too soon to comment [as to why MDP didn’t win the election] – we can only conjecture and surmise at this point, but if look into Malé, it was very obvious that the voter turnout was very low.”

“I believe a lot of MDP supporters and people who have similar thinking did not come out and vote this time. Because many of them believed that it was meaningless, that the government will keep changing the results until they get what they want,” said Ibra.

Ibu Solih, meanwhile, noted that the Supreme Court’s influence in the election also had a great impact on the turnout.

“One thing that we noticed is that following the Supreme Court cases, there was a lot of doubt whether or not the election will be held on the date. This contributed to the low turn out as people had been confused, and failed to re-register,” he said.

Chairperson Moosa said that people were “tired and exhausted” after three elections and “fighting the coup”, noting that this has also led to financial issues within the party.

The road ahead

Ibra described the party’s loss yesterday as a “huge set back for the democracy movement”.

“I think with these results, the constitution which protects minority rights and fundamental liberties will be suspended. It will be put on the shelf.”

“With tyranny of the judiciary combined with the tyranny of the majority, we will see the right to dissent, the right to exercise people’s will, the right live freely will be curtailed to that extent [where the constitution will be as good as suspended].”

Ibra noted, however, that no democratic efforts were ever wasted, while Moosa remained adamant that the MDP would not let democracy fail in the Maldives.

“We will not let that happen. We will protect democracy, hold the government accountable and ensure the independence of the judiciary. We can do all this, and we will.”

“We started this [fight for democracy] under an authoritarian government with the support of the people. We brought down that government with an election, we forced them to bring a democratic government, we have grown in numbers since then. We fought the coup and got an election even with several attempts to deny it,” said Moosa.

Both Ibra and Ibu felt that it is time for MDP to sit down and discuss how to proceed in the future.

“The MDP has to sit down and reevaluate their strategies and decide if the strategy used in the past five or six years has worked or not. We need to have a very honest look at the situation and reevaluate. But this task will be made harder considering the environment we have to restrategise in. It is a difficult and more opressive environment,” Ibra said.

With calls for party reform being heard, party chair Moosa said any changes will be brought in through democratic means.

“If it is necessary, we will reform MDP. The party will function as the members want it to, we will never allow family rule,” he said.

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High Court upholds lower court’s ruling to jail MP Jabir

The High Court has today ruled that the Criminal Court’s verdict to sentence Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Abdulla Jabir was lawful.

During today’s hearing, the court told Jabir that the it could not agree with claims that the Criminal Court had not given enough opportunity for Jabir to defend himself.

The court responded to Jabir’s allegations that among the three police officers summoned to the court as witnesses against Jabir, one officer had tortured the defendant. The court noted that Jabir was not able to clarify to the court who among the three had tortured him.

The High Court ruled that, though there may be one officer among the three that had tortured Jabir, the statements of the other two officers will still be valid, which was enough to rule that Jabir was guilty.

Additionally, the High Court responded to Jabir’s claims that the Criminal Court’s verdict did not have the signature of the presiding judge, noted that although the verdict did not have presiding judge’s signature, the case report did.

On February 20, 2014, the Criminal Court sentenced Jabir to one year after finding him guilty of refusing to provide his urine sample to the police to run a drug test, and sentenced him to twelve months under the Drug Act 17/2011 article 123(a)(b).

The Criminal Court ruling stated that on November 16, 2012, Jabir was arrested as a suspect in a drug related case and that police asked him to produce his urine sample to which he clearly refused according to the witnesses produced by the Prosecutor General’s Office.

The verdict stated that, although Jabir had claimed that he was tortured by the witnesses produced by the state and that the police did not follow the correct procedure when asking for a urine sample, Jabir was not able to prove these accusations to the court.

Jabir was taken into police custody on November 16, 2012 along with senior MDP members while they were on Hondaidhoo Island, Haa Dhaalu Atoll – an uninhabited island owned by Jabir.

Police offices raided Hondaidhoo, where they found large amounts of suspected drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

The prosecutor general pressed three charges against Jabir for refusing to provide a urine sample to run a drug test, possession of cannabis and possession of alcohol.

The Criminal Court on February 27, 2014, ruled that Jabir was not guilty of possessing cannabis and concluded the case, However, the third trial is still going on in the court where the court is to decide if he is guilty for possession of alcohol.

Article 73(c)(2) of the constitution states that a person shall be disqualified from election as a member of the People’s Majlis – or a member of the People’s Majlis immediately becomes disqualified – if he has been convicted of a criminal offence and is serving a sentence of more than twelve months.

Article 73(c)(3) states that if a person has been convicted of a criminal offence and sentenced to a term of more than twelve months, unless a period of three years has elapsed since his release, or he has been pardoned for the offence for which he was sentenced, he will also be disqualified.

Jabir was set to re-contest his Kaashidhoo seat next month after an internal MDP decision to discipline the MP for repeatedly breaking three-line whips was overturned on appeal.

According to the Drug Act, Sections 123(a), 161(a) and 161(b), any person arrested on suspicion of having abused alcohol or narcotics has an obligation to comply with police requests for routine urine examination by promptly providing urine samples, and failure to comply is a criminal offence punishable with a one-year jail sentence.

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High Court rules Jabir cannot be released

The High Court has decided that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) member Abdulla Jabir cannot be released from jail as his legal team had requested.

Jabir’s legal representatives submitted their appeal earlier this month on March 3. At the hearing yesterday (March 10) Jabir’s lawyers asked the court to release the MP until it had reached a conclusion on whether or not to uphold the Criminal Court’s decision to imprison him for 12 months.

On February 20 Jabir was sentenced to 12 months in prison after being found guilty of failing to provide a urine sample to the police to run a drug test.

The Kaashidhoo MP’s representatives have argued that his trial and sentencing “was in violation of several procedural and factual formalities accorded in the Constitution and statutes of the Maldives.”

Local media reported that the High Court informed Jabir’s legal team that their request could not be granted later on the same day.

The incident leading to Jabir’s imprisonment happened on November 16, 2012, when a total of 10 people were taken into police custody after police raided and searched the island Hondaidhoo. Officers alleged they found large amounts of “suspected” drugs and alcohol upon searching the island.

Police Sub-Inspector Hassan Haneef said at the time of the arrests that officers requested all suspects taken into custody on Hondaidhoo to provide urine samples for a routine examination. Seven individuals including other senior MPs refused to give a urine sample, leading to prosecution.

Police issued an order for Special Envoy Ibrahim Hussain Zaki – one of those facing charges related to the incident – to be taken into custody presented in court after officials were unable to present him with a summons.

After his conviction, Jabir’s legal team submitted a plea to the High Court arguing that he had the right to campaign for the Majlis elections. Jabir was set to re-contest his Kaashidhoo seat after an internal MDP decision to discipline the MP for repeatedly breaking three-line whips was overturned on appeal.

The constitution stipulates that a anyone sentenced to longer than 12 months in prison will be ineligible for election to the People’s Majlis.

While the MP was recently found not to have been guilty of possessing cannabis during the incident, his trial for alcohol possession is ongoing.

Speaking prior to this announcement by the High Court, Jabir’s wife Dhiyana Saeed stated the legal team would file a case with the Civil Court if the High Court did not accept.

Dhiyana was not responding to calls at the time of press.

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MDP asks High Court to halt Feydhoo primary election court case

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has asked the High Court to issue an injunction halting the ongoing Civil Court case filed by MDP MP Alhan Fahmy disputing the result of the party’s Feydhoo constituency primary election.

The party asked that the case be halted until deliberations were concluded on a procedural issue raised with the High Court.

The MDP had suggested that the Civil Court could not proceed with the case as Alhan had not completed all the party’s internal appeal procedures.

Newspaper Haveeru reported that Alhan told the High Court bench today that an injunction against court proceedings could only be issued in situations where either the defendant or respondent might face damage beyond repair should the case continue.

Judges questioned the MDP’s lawyer as to whether the party charter specified that a member could not file a lawsuit against a party decision without first taking the case to the party’s appeal committee, reported the paper.

The MDP lawyer acknowledged that the charter did not state that a member could not file a lawsuit.

The party’s legal representatives did note that Alhan’s stabbing – from which he has been recovering in Sri Lanka – came 18 hours after the party announced the primary results for Feydhoo constituency, giving him time to have filed a case with the appeal committee.

After losing the contest for this month’s Majlis elections to Mohamed Nihad in February, Alhan claimed that the list used on polling day was different from the eligible voter lists, and that any candidate who won the party ticket through a fraudulent vote could not be a valid one.

Last week, the Civil Court informed Alhan that it was beyond its jurisdiction to invalidate the candidacy of Nihad.

Alhan has called for a fresh vote in the constituency, claiming the voter list used at polling stations was outdated and did not afford 67 party members the right to vote.

The MDP’s election committee confirmed that 67 members were missing from the list at the ballot box, but decided against holding a re-vote, arguing that the primary outcome would not change even if these members were allowed to vote.

On February 1 – the same day Alhan announced that he would file a case with the court to cancel the primary – he was stabbed while at Breakwater cafe in the artificial beach area of Malé.

Following the attack Alhan’s left leg was paralysed though he has since regained the ability to walk with the aid of a crutch.

Alhan rejoined the MDP in June 2013 after an apparently acrimonious departure in April of the previous year. Party vice president at the time, Alhan was ejected – alongside party President Dr Ibrahim Didi – after the pair publicly questioned the MDP’s official interpretation of the February 7 ousting of President Mohamed Nasheed.

The Feydhoo MP subsequently organised a rally – sparsely attended – calling for the freeing of the MDP from the influence of Nasheed. Alhan subsequently joined the government-aligned Jumhooree Party.

The MP was initially elected to parliament on a Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) ticket, making him one of the few MPs to have been a member of almost every major political party represented in parliament, barring the DRP’s splinter party, the Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM).

Alhan is now contesting in the parliament election as an independent candidate.

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MP Alhan Fahmy returns to Malé following stabbing

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy has returned to the Maldives after recuperating in Sri Lanka following a stab attack in Malé last month.

Local media reported that the Feydhoo constituency member returned yesterday, walking with a crutch following initial fears that the wound received to his back may have caused permanent paralysis.

Alhan, set to contest for his parliamentary seat as an independent later this month, is said to be planning a press conference in the near future, reported Haveeru.

The Civil Court last week accepted the MP’s request to look into the MDP’s Feydhoo primary contest – which took place just days before the attack. Alhan has claimed the vote was fraudulent.

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Feydhoo primary annulment case accepted by Civil Court

The Civil Court has reportedly accepted the case of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy, who has requested the annulment of the the Feydhoo constituency primary election.

After losing the contest for next month’s Majis elections, Fahmy claimed the contest was fraudulent and that any candidate who won the MDP ticket through fraud cannot be a valid one.

After Mohamed Nihad won the primary, Fahmy alleged that the list used on polling day were different from the [eligible] voter lists.

Alhan called for a fresh vote in the constituency, claiming the voter list used at polling stations was outdated and did not afford 67 party members the right to vote.

The election committee confirmed that 67 members were indeed missing from the list at the ballot box, but decided against holding a re-vote, arguing the primary outcome would not change even if these members were allowed to vote.

After attempting to file the case with the High Court, the MP’s legal representatives were told that the court did not have the jurisdiction to look into internal party matters.

Alhan was stabbed in public on February 1 and is currently recovering in Sri Lanka. He has announced he will contest March’s People’s Majlis election as an independent.

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Week in review: February 1 – 8

The last week’s headlines were dominated by the stabbing of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy in a Malé cafe.

After flying to Sri Lanka for prolonged surgery to repair spinal damage, the Feydhoo constituency MP’s family revealed he will face a hard struggle if he is to regain the full use of his right leg.

The attack was swiftly condemned both internationally and domestically, with fellow MP’s pointing the finger at local gangs and their political paymasters.

Despite his attack, Fahmy remained determined to contest in the Majlis primaries, despite the MDP refusing to hold a re-vote in the Feydhoo party primary. After losing the poll, Alhan had questioned the fairness of proceedings and will now contest as an independent.

Controversy also accompanied a number of other MDP primaries, with  Kendhoo constituency candidate Mauroof Zakir considering a legal response to what he considered to have been irregularities stemming from the party’s abandoned polls in late January.

Kaashidhoo incumbent Abdulla Jabir, meanwhile, retained his place on the party ticket after the MDP’s disciplinary committee found party regulations did not permit his removal, despite his repeated defiance of the whip.

The MDP’s talismanic leader, Mohamed Nasheed, this week told Minivan News he was confident in the transparency of the polls. Discussing the two years since his removal from the presidency, he noted that the current governing coalition would struggle to provide political stability.

Following the completion of its primary races, Nasheed revealed that his party’s legislative agenda for the 18th Majlis would include strengthening local government, reforming the judiciary, and eliminating barriers to development.

Nasheed’s doubts over the unity of the current coalition appeared well-founded this week as the religious Adhaalath Party announced it would be openly competing with the Jumhooree Party (JP) in five parliamentary constituencies, while talks with the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) continue.

The PPM’s selection of candidates for the poll continued, after party members in Maavah constituency, Laamu Atoll, demonstrated against the apparent award of the ticket to the current member without a primary.

After assigning 13 of its 49 places on the ticket without contests, the PPM is holding primary polls for an additional 27 seats today (Saturday 8), with the method of allocation for the remaining 9 yet to be decided.

Progressive coalition partner the JP meanwhile concluded selections for its 28 allocated constituencies, which includes eight incumbent MPs and new member Abdulla Riyaz – former commissioner of police.

One person who is unlikely to be standing in the March 22 polls is Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party MP Dr Abdulla Mausoom. As Minivan News’ series of interviews with MPs continued, Mausoom described the occupation as no longer “savvy”.

Legal interpretations

The Majlis continued to hold special sessions this week to help the government raise revenue to meet its 2014 budget commitments, including the reintroduction of tourist bed tax and the raising of T-GST in November. Changes to current import duties were also passed.

Following the Criminal Court’s continued recalcitrance after the Majlis’s failure to approve a new prosecutor general, the Chief Justice this week suggested that parliament take some time during the current emergency sessions to resolve the issue.

PPM MP Ahmed Mahloof also suggested that he would submit a motion to the house, calling for a public referendum on the death penalty to be held alongside the parliamentary elections.

Asked about the practice of female circumcision this week, Figh Academy Dr Mohamed Iyaz Abdul Latheef endorsed the practice, citing several hadiths which he felt made clear the obligatory nature of this procedure.

Elsewhere, local heritage group REVIVE announced it would be considering legal action after a centuries old mosque in Malé was demolished to make way for a modern replacement.

Finally, as crime figures in the country revealed a huge spike in cases of theft and robbery, a local drug lord appeared to have evaded punishment, leaving for Sri Lanka part-way through an 18 year sentence.

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