minivan news – Page 84 – Minivan News

Elections Commission dismisses concerns of JP, PPM over use of Indian IT staff

The Elections Commission (EC) has dismissed fears foreign nationals will have access to the country’s voter database for upcoming polling, as it seeks assistance from Indian IT professionals to set up software to help oversee future council elections.

EC President Fuwad Thowfeek said he had met this week met with a “combined team” representing the government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and Jumhoree Party (JP) to dismissed their fears that foreign IT workers would be given access to information related to next month’s scheduled election.

“We explained to them that the Indian team would not be working on systems being used for the upcoming presidential election. They will instead be providing assistance to help develop a program for future elections,” he said.

Local media reported today that the PPM and JP had challenged the possibility of holding free and fair elections scheduled for September 7 this year if foreigners could access the electoral database and other systems.

However the EC has moved to dismiss any fears, adding that it only local EC staff had access to sensitive information and the commission’s security systems.

Despite having initially sought local IT professionals for the project, Thowfeek said it had not been possible to find Maldivians with either the programming skills required for the project, or those willing to work within the budget assigned for the project.

“Firms presently operating in Male’ demanded much higher rates to oversee the project,” he added.

Thowfeek said he was surprised by the concerns of the government-aligned parties, given the large number of state bodies and institutions dependent on foreign expertise and assistance.

“This would not be the first time the EC or the government has accepted assistance from friendly nations. For instance the defence ministry has been getting assistance from the US, while police are given a wide variety of training from numerous international bodies,” he said.

“There is no reason why political parties should be worried [about foreign nationals being given access to EC data]. We are fully committed to free elections and remain answerable to the parliament. We will oversee this election with caution and confidence.”

The government is presently considering introducing a border control system provided free of charge by the US government, after this week terminating a contract signed in 2010 with Malaysia-based IT group Nexbis to install similar technology.

Thowfeek added that the EC had traditionally enjoyed a close relationship with its Indian counterpart, particularly for training of its staff abroad on overseeing electoral processes. He said a total of 20 Maldivian staff had received training last year relating to good practice in overseeing voting.

Both the Indian Elections Commission, as well as observers from several EU and Commonwealth nations will be coming to the Maldives to oversee next month’s vote.

“Complex” council elections

According to Thowfeek, the Indian programmers brought over to the Maldives to work with the EC had been hired specifically to develop a computerised system to help monitor future atoll and island council elections.

He said that with some 190 separate island constituencies, two city councils and 20 individual atoll councils, previous voting had presented complex challenges for the EC to overcome – despite the polls seen as credible by observers and local parties.

Based on the EC’s experience of overseeing the last council elections in February 2011, Thowfeek said it would be preferable to commence work on a computer system that could identify the exact number of ballot papers for each specific constituency around the Maldives.

“There are over 200 ballot papers required during a council election, so we are looking for a system that can send the appropriate data [to these islands],” he said.

The proposed system is expected to allow registered Maldives nationals to vote for the council of their respective home island from anywhere in the country, without the need to return to that particular constituency to vote.”

Party concerns

The EC has sought to reassure concerns from assorted political parties this week over the credibility of the upcoming polls.

On Monday (August 5), the EC rejected any possibility that the identities of deceased citizens could be used to fraudulently vote in the upcoming election, after opposition allegations that security forces were seeking to influence polling by misusing such data.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has continued to accuse both the government and senior police officials of trying to undermine free and fair elections, accusing police of actively seeking deceased lists detailing the country’s deceased in an attempts to try and rig voting.

Police later rejected the allegations, with the EC stating that it would not be possible to vote using details of the deceased.

Meanwhile late last month the EC rejected calls by the PPM to make voter registration more “lenient”, with Thowfeek claiming efforts were being stepped up to prevent voter registry fraud, while also dealing with challenges that arose during the country’s first multi-party election in 2008.

“We have worked to rectify these mistakes and in the last council elections there were hardly any complaints raised with us by political parties,” he said at the time. “More than that, we have worked hard this year to get the registry up to date.”

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UK to establish temporary mobile visa application point for Maldivian students

Maldivian students intending to study in the UK will able to apply for student visas without having to travel to Colombo in Sri Lanka, thanks to a temporary mobile enrollment system to be set up later this month.

Students will be able to lodge UK visa applications on August 28 at Nasandhura Palace Hotel, using what the High Commission described in a statement as a ‘mobile biometric clinic’.

“Those using the service will save themselves the cost and time of travelling to Colombo. The service is optional, and being run by our commercial partner, VFS Global, who have successfully managed similar services in India and elsewhere on behalf of UK Visas and Immigration,” the statement read.

Tom Greig, Regional Director South Asia for UK Visas and Immigration said the UK “is keen to attract the brightest and best talent from around the world. Our aim in
setting up a temporary enrollment location in Malé is to bring the UK visa application point closer to our Maldivian customers, and make the process of applying for a UK visa as quick and convenient as possible.”

Applicants wishing to use the service must book an appointment in advance by calling +94 114 692 604 (08:00 hrs to 15:00 hrs – Maldives Standard Time). There will be a charge of £192 (US$302) for using the service, in addition to the usual visa fee. Appointment numbers are limited.

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Gayoom’s brother-in-law Ilyas Ibrahim declares support for Jumhoree Party

The brother-in-law of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Ilyas Ibrahim, has declared his intention to back Jumhoree Party (JP) presidential candidate Gasim Ibrahim in the upcoming elections.

“Ilyas Ibrahim is one of the senior most politicians in the Maldives. He is saying that he will support Gasim Ibrahim and Hassan Saeed this time. We will even hold a ceremony in connection to this very soon,” a JP spokesperson told local newspaper Haveeru.

Ilyas, who held multiple ministerial portfolios under Gayoom’s government, quit Gayoom’s Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM) in July, after publicly accusing the party of disrupting President Mohamed Waheed’s coalition.

At the time Ilyas backed Umar Naseer, the former Deputy Leader of the PPM who was expelled after accusing its presidential candidate and half-brother of Gayoom, Abulla Yameen, of rigging the party’s primaries.

Following the defeat, Naseer claimed he had to battle the “entire machine” of the party during the primary, claiming that his opponent had every advantage in the race.

“Former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s children were with Yameen, the largest gangsters in the country were with Yameen, all the drug cartels in the country were with Yameen, the most corrupted people were with Yameen, the whole elections committee was with Yameen and a large chunk of PPM’s parliament members gathered around Yameen,” he told the press at the time, before declaring his support for Gasim’s campaign.

The resort tycoon’s ‘Jumhoree coalition’ also includes the religious Adhaalath Party and the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP), who last month defected from President Mohamd Waheed’s own coalition.
Gasim has meanwhile positioned the coalition as defenders of Islam and nationalism. Speaking at a recent rally the resort tycoon took credit for the article in the new constitution tying Maldivian citizenship to being Sunni Muslim.

“I made the proposition to include the article demanding that every Maldivian citizen must be a Muslim. I did this by invoking the powers vested to the Speaker of the Constitutional Assembly under the previous constitution,” Gasim said.

Meanwhile as head of the Villa resort chain Gasim remains one of the country’s single largest importers of alcohol, with customs records for 2011 revealing that his hotels – including the Royal, Paradise, Sun, and Holiday Island resorts – imported approximately 121,234.51 litres of beer, 2048 litres of whiskey, 3684 litres of vodka and 219.96 kilograms of pork sausages annually, among other haram (prohibited) commodities restricted to ‘uninhabited’ islands.

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Gasim in “better position” than Yameen for election victory, JP claims

The Jumhoree Party (JP), led by business tycoon and MP Gasim Ibrahim, has this week expressed confidence it will finish above the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) in the first round of the upcoming presidential election – before securing a second round victory.

Speaking following the launch of the JP’s election manifesto, the party’s Policy Secretary Mohamed Ajmal said indicators like internal policy research had reaffirmed its supporters’ belief that MP Gasim was in a “better position” than PPM candidate Abdulla Yameen to secure the presidency.

The comments were made following the launch of the JP’s election manifesto, which places an emphasis on pre-school and university education, as well as introducing a so-called “holistic” taxation policy extending to individuals and businesses.

The PPM, formed by former autocratic President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, has meanwhile maintained that MP Yameen and former President Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), remain the only two candidates capable of winning the election – accusing Gasim of having to buy support in order to compete with them.

‘Jumhoree coalition’

Despite the claims, the JP has been working to consolidate its support base ahead of September’s poll, with the religious conservative Adhaalath Party (AP) and the Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) last month leaving a coalition with President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s Gaumee Ithihaad Party (GIP) to instead back Gasim.

With voting expected to commence a month today, MP Gasim has claimed in local media that the JP had over 30,000 members when including applications waiting to be approved by the country’s Election Commission (EC).

JP Policy Secretary Ajmal said the membership numbers were reflective of campaign visits to islands across the country in recent months, which highlighted that Gasim was seen as a “man of the people” ahead of the election.

He added that the addition of other high-profile politicians like one time PPM Deputy Leader Umar Naseer to the JP further highlighted the growing support for Gasim’s candidacy.

Alongside this support, Ajmal said he remained confident that the focus of the JP manifesto on issues such as tax reform would directly address key voter concerns about the current state of the economy.

Among these proposed reforms is a “holistic” approach to tax that would extend taxation beyond the Tourism Goods and Services Tax (T-GST) and general GST introduced and expanded under the former government to include capital gains tax and income tax.

“With taxation, we hope to take a holistic approach to the bare minimum policy of tax we have with T-GST and GST,” Ajmal said.

He added that a JP government would also work to comply with International Monetary Funds (IMF) recommendations to balance the nation’s budget deficit. The IMF earlier this year expressed concern that without raising revenue and cutting expenditures, the Maldives risked exhausting its international reserves and sparking an economic crisis.

Ajmal said that while there were many ways to try and curb the budget deficit, the JP would favour what he called a “optimistic approach”.

“There is not a problem with raising revenue in the Maldives, the problem is in fact related to a lack of infrastructure,” he said. “The wealthy are not being taxed properly and there is an issue with the distribution of wealth in the nation.”

Ajmal claimed that with an estimated 60 to 70 percent of national income now being spent by the government on recurrent expenditure, the JP in government would look to curb the amount of borrowing undertaken by the state.

He claimed one solution would be reducing the state’s reliance on treasury bills by securing “low interest” development loans to try and reduce outgoing payments on national borrowing. The spokesperson was not drawn on whether cuts would need to be made to the country’s civil service.

The JP meanwhile pledged that it would not be increasing the size of the country’s civil service as part of aims to curb recurrent expenditure to about 40 percent, focusing instead on investment in local infrastructure to try and raise revenue through the private sector.

With the JP presently serving within the coalition government of President Waheed following the controversial transfer of power in February 2012, Ajmal said he believed voters saw Gasim as an “individual” candidate, and not someone who would continue the economic policies of the present administration.

“Mr Gasim has always supported all governments, apart from the previous administration when he was betrayed by [former President] Mohamed Nasheed. We as a party are always concerned for the people,” he said. “We believe that voters don’t see us as part of the current government.”

Ajmal said that the party believed Gasim was an individual who voters would understand did not have the powers alone to affect the financial policy of the present government.

“Mr Gasim has supplied some US$10 million to US$12 million though the Villa Foundation on philanthropic matters,” he said.

Ajmal claimed that the ‘Jumhoree coalition’ backing Gasim election had now allowed the JP to position themselves as the “main alternative” to former President Nasheed for all voters wishing to oppose him.

JP coalition “no threat”: PPM

Ajmal’s claims were rejected by PPM MP Ahmed Nihan, who today dismissed any notion that the coalition backing Gasim’s presidency could pose a threat to his own party’s election campaign.

He added that the PPM was certain the presidency would be won by either its own candidate in Yameen or former President Nasheed.

Addressing the members of the ‘Jumhoree coalition’ backing Gasim, Nihan accused the religious conservative Adhalaath Party in particular of having “disintegrated” and no longer resembling the political party it was formed as in 2005.

“In 2005, soon after the election, [the AP] has huge support , but soon after they sold their beliefs to many parties including the MDP,” he alleged.

“Maybe tomorrow they will come knocking on our door,” Nihan added of the party.

As a further contrast to the JP, Nihan argued that only the PPM and MDP had supporters and activists working across islands all over the country that were fully “engaged” in election campaigning and making banners, sometimes at their own expense.

He claimed that during the party’s recent campaign tours, the PPM had not seen any similar support for Gasim, the JP or his coalition.

“[The JP] does not have campaigners all over the country. Gasim has had to pay people to work for him, where as we do not have to pay for support,” Nihan said.

Flying the flag

Taking the example of his own constituency in Vilimale’, Nihan claimed that Gasim had brought supporters across from the southerly Addu Atoll to come and put up banners “bought from China”, 60 percent of which he alleged had been put up across the one island.

The flags are said to have been set up in such significant quantities that one Vilimale’ resident told Minivan News: “On some roads, I can’t see the sky.”

Similar displays of flags and party colours have in recent months begun appearing across the capital of Male’, even resulting in a so-called ‘paint war’ between rival PPM and MDP supporters in June.

However, Nihan claimed that majority of flags and banners produced by the PPM had been handmade by local supporters, reflecting what he said highlighted the overriding popularity of the party in Maldivian politics.

“On [Vilimale’] we don’t see the support for Gasim, but the flags are certainly there,” he said.

Nihan agreed that Gasim did have “loyal” support in parts of the country, but said it would not be enough to challenge for a top two place during national polls.

“I express my gratitude to Gasim as a philanthropist, but his coalition partners will not provide the level of support we have,” he said. “He is spending millions on his campaign.”

Nihan was also critical of the JP’s proposed reforms to taxation, arguing that Gasim as both a parliamentarian and party leader had not previously advocated for increased taxation.

He accepted that before the foundation of the PPM, the majority of the party’s MPs – then belonging to the Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) before a bitter split – had ultimately supported the introduction of taxation despite initial reservations.

Nihan said that the party’s initial reservations were based on the timing of introducing such taxation starting from 2011, adding that PPM candidate Yameen did support the introduction of tax despite wishing the matter had been handled differently.

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Islamic Ministry declares Thursday August 8 Eid-ul-Fitr

The Islamic Ministry has declared that Eid-ul-Fitr will take place tomorrow, Thursday August 8.

Eid-ul-Fitr is the celebration marking the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.

President Dr Mohamed Waheed will receive members of the public at Muleaage to exchange Eid greetings tomorrow morning from 9:30am, according to the President’s Office website, and then address the nation at 11:00am.

The event is open to members of foreign diplomatic missions and international organisations in Male, according to the President’s office.

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Police search 1100 expatriate workers in hunt for rapist

Police have searched more than 1100 expatriate workers in an ongoing hunt for a foreign national accused of raping a 19 year-old Maldivian girl in Hulhumale last weekend.

The victim was snatched from the street and raped her in some bushes near Reethi Gas Magu Road. at around 9:30am on Saturday.

Police have not revealed the attacker’s nationality, but have described him as 5 feet 7 inches in height with shortly trimmed hair, last seen on the 10:00am Saturday ferry to Male nursing a badly-injured left forefinger.

According to a police statement, 334 workers were search in 23 locations on Hulhumale, 400 in Male, and 438 on the industrial island of Thilafushi.

Police said many people who travelled on the 10:00am ferry would have seen the suspect, and asked for anybody with more information to contact either the main police line (332 2111) or the serious and organised crime department on 991 1099.

The incident was the second of three rapes to be reported in less than a week.

On July 30 police arrested four men and one minor in connection with the gang rape of a 17 year-old girl on the island of Milandhoo in Shaviyani Atoll.

The victim was abducted, gang raped and filmed by a ‘large group’ of men, after she was abducted while walking home after attending a tuition class.

Two more suspects have since been arrested.

On July 27 an underage female was reportedly raped in a house in Male’, where she had gone to meet a friend.

Family and Child Protection Department Head, Chief Inspector Hassan Shifau said when the victim arrived at house there were three males in a room waiting for her, who threatened her, forced her to smoke cigarettes, and then forced her to have sex with them and filmed the incident.

Police have since arrested four males in connection with the incident, including two minors.

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Maldives government terminates Nexbis agreement, gives 14 days to vacate

The Maldives government has terminated its agreement with Malaysian security firm Nexbis to install and operate a border control system, giving it 14 days to vacate.

Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim local media that the disputed contract – signed under the previous government of former President Mohamed Nasheed in 2010 – was terminated by the cabinet yesterday over fears it was causing unspecified “major losses” to the state.

The termination was announced as immigration officials today said replacement technology being provided by the US government was not presently functional, with implementation “on hold” pending a legal hearing into the matter.

Department of Immigration Spokesperson Ibrahim Ashraf told Minivan News this morning that he had not personally been made aware of any decision by the government to terminate the agreement.

However, Ashraf confirmed that replacement technology being provided free of charge by the US government was “not 100 percent functional” at present.

“Because of legal issues, the project has been on hold,” he explained.

Immigration officials last month confirmed that “testing” had been underway on the new US-donated system, while Nexbis’ border control technology remained in use to monitor the arrivals and departures of foreign nationals

Ashraf referred further questions on the Nexbis system to Immigration Controller Dr Mohamed Ali, who was not responding to calls at time of press.

Nexbis is the second high profile foreign investment to be suddenly evicted by the administration of President Dr Mohamed Waheed in the past 12 months.

The government last November announced it was terminating a 25-year concession agreement with India-based GMR to construct and operate a new terminal at Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA) in Male, giving the company seven days to vacate the country.

GMR is currently seeking compensation totaling US$1.4 billion from the government as part of arbitration proceedings to be heard in a Singaporean court, damages eclipsing the annual state budget.

Speaking to local media today, Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim was quoted as saying that the government expected to assume control of the country’s borders at the end of the 14 day notice period given to Nexbis.

He claimed that the US system was also “ready to be operational”, although no decision had yet been made to use the technology.

Attorney General (AG) Azima Shukoor added that discussions were presently being held with Nexbis over reaching an out of court settlement for terminating the contract, although she declined to provide any more details to media today.

“We assure you that the burden on the state will be far less with the termination of the agreement rather than continuing with it. We will take this process forward in the best interest of the state,” she was quoted as saying by Haveeru.

Concession agreement

Under the concession agreement signed with the Maldives government, Nexbis levied a fee of US$2 from passengers in exchange for installing, maintaining and upgrading the country’s immigration system. The company also agreed a fee of US$15 for every work permit card issued under the system.

Both AG Azima and Defence Minister Nazim were not responding to calls at time of press.

Nexbis last month invoiced the Department of Immigration and Emigration for US$2.8 million (MVR 43 million) for the installation and operation of its border control technology in line with a concession agreement signed in 2010 – requesting payment be settled within 30 days.

Nexbis’ lawyers argued that the company had expected the fee to be included in the taxes and surcharges applied to airline tickets in and out of the country, according to local media. However, lawyers argued these payments had not been made due to the government’s “neglect” in notifying the relevant international authorities.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from Suood, Anwar & Co – the company’s legal representatives in the Maldives – at time of press.

Parliamentary vote

Parliament had voted unanimously to terminate the agreement on 25 December 2012, in line with a recommendation from the Finance Committee alleging foul play in the signing of the agreement with former Immigration Controller Illyas Hussain Ibrahim.

Presenting the Finance Committee report to the floor, Chair MP Ahmed Nazim explained at the time that the “main problem” flagged by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) was that the tender had not been made in accordance with the documents by the National Planning Council authorising the project.

The Finance Committee also recommended terminating the agreement over concerns it contained clauses to waive taxes to the company, Nazim said.

He noted that imposing or waiving taxes was a prerogative of parliament under article 97(d) of the constitution.

Following parliament’s termination of the project in December, Nexbis sought a legal injunction to prevent any cancellation of the agreement while court hearings over the contract were still ongoing.

The company had sought to contest whether the ACC has the power to compulsorily request the government to cease all work in relation to the border control system agreement.

However, in April of this year, the High Court overturned a Civil Court ruling declaring the ACC could not terminate a border control system (BSC) agreement signed by the Department of Immigration with Malaysian mobile security firm Nexbis.

The High Court ruling (Dhivehi) cleared the way for the Civil Court to hear the case filed by the ACC should it be resubmitted.

Nexbis has emphatically denied allegations of corruption, previously speculating that “criminal elements supporting human trafficking” were seeking to sabotage the agreement.

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President Waheed inaugurates Thaa Atoll, Dhaalu Atoll road developments

President Dr Mohamed Waheed yesterday (August 5) inaugurated two separate road development projects on the islands of Vilufushi in Thaa Atoll and Kudahuvadhoo in Dhaalu Atoll.

Speaking on Vilufushi, Dr Waheed said the projects were part of a nationwide commitment undertaken by his administration to build roads over the last two years. Nine roads were expected to be built in Vilufushi alone, according to the President’s Office website.

President Waheed added that with Vilufushi being one of the islands most severely impacted in the Maldives during the 2004 Asian Tsunami, a greater number of services still needed to be provided to the local population living there.

According to the President’s Office, Dr Waheed also shared specifics of government development plans for the island.

The president’s campaigning has recently come under criticism from rivals standing against him in the upcoming election.

The Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) – part of his current coalition government – has accused Dr Waheed of using state resources to campaign for his own Gaumee Ihthihad Party (GIP) ahead of the upcoming presidential election scheduled for September 7.

PPM Presidential candidate MP Abdulla Yameen back in May said he understood “concerns” raised by MDP candidate Mohamed Nasheed regarding President Waheed’s use of state resources for campaigning.

“That is, the way [the government] is doing things, there are problems over whether we could reach free and fair elections. The Auditor General and ACC [Anti-Corruption Commission] have taken note of this,” he said at the time.

The PPM has nonetheless pledged to continue supporting President Waheed’s government up until September’s election, despite concerns about the decision to dismiss former Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed after he decided to stand as MP Yameen’s running mate.

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EC dismisses possibility of electoral fraud using deceased voter details

The Elections Commission (EC) has rejected any possibility that the identities of deceased citizens could be used to fraudulently vote in the upcoming election, despite opposition allegations that security forces were seeking to influence polling by misusing such data.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has continued to accuse both the government and senior police officials of trying to undermine free and fair elections, alleging the institution was actively seeking deceased lists detailing the country’s deceased in an attempts to try and rig voting.

Rejecting any allegations that figures within the institution were seeking to rig polling, the Maldives Police Service (MPS) today confirmed it has been seeking a list detailing deceased peoples from across the Maldives as part of an investigation into allegations of fraudulent party membership.

The police service last month last month claimed of having experienced “difficulties” investigating 47 cases of fraudulent political party enlistment, with “no way” to hold the respective political parties accountable.

EC Vice President Ahmed Fayaz confirmed that the commission had officially asked the police to investigate allegations that certain political parties had previously attempted to register the deceased as party members over fears of registration fraud.

“There were concerns that parties were using details of the deceased to register,” he said. “We therefore asked police to look into the issue as we did have some forms filled in by people who were already deceased.”

Fayaz also rejected any possibility that details of deceased peoples could be used to fraudulently vote in the election, adding that Police Commissioner Riyaz had also openly refuted allegations that the institution was trying to influence September’s vote in local media.

“I don’t think that anyone could affect the election or vote using the identity of a deceased person,” he said of the MDP’s allegations.

Fayaz said that MPS had not officially requested the EC provide any data to it concerning voter lists or details on the deceased, instead seeking the information through local authorities.

“We have heard that police contacted either atoll or island councils to request details of deceased people,” he said. “We have not been in contact with them on the matter.”

Referring to the police investigation into membership fraud, Commissioner Riyaz was quoted in local media yesterday (August 4) as rejecting any allegations that police would seek to tamper with ballots or voter details.

“Police will not rig this election in any way. That is something we will never do. The information we receive from the councils will be forwarded to the elections commission,” he told the Haveeru newspaper.

Reiterating the commissioner’s claimed today, Police Spokesperson Chief Inspector Hassan Haneef added that as part of investigations into potential fraudulent party membership, requests had been sent to local councils for them to clarify the status of deceased voters on their islands.

Police influence

MDP MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that concerns about police trying to seek the details of deceased nationals reflected the party’s wider suspicions that senior figures in the MPS were trying to use their influence to manipulate the election.

Ghafoor said one key concern had been an announcement back in June that staff at the Department of National Registration were refusing to continue issuing national identity cards 94 days before elections, complaining of a malfunctioning air conditioning unit.

He added that the party has suspected there had been some connection on the matter of ID cards, which would affect all political parties in the country if not resolved.

With an estimated 30,000 ID cards said to have expired ahead of the election, Ghafoor added that the halting of work at the Department of National Registration had been placed on the agenda of the opposition majority Independent Commissions Oversight Committee in parliament.

“We fear that police are trying to force their way in and influence the database for their own ends,” he said. “We are therefore suspicious that there could be a connection with the issue of ID cards.”

Voter “lenience” calls

The EC meanwhile claimed last week it had rejected calls from the government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) to make voter registration more “lenient”. Commission President Fuwad Thowfeek said efforts were continuing to step up measures in preventing voter registry fraud.

The EC added that it had already discussed with parties the measures it had taken prevent electoral fraud, while also trying to deal with key errors that had arisen since the country’s first multi-party election in 2008.

According to Thowfeek, the EC has also run campaigns on state media requesting the public update their details to ensure voters and their families were correctly registered ahead of voting.

“I can assure everyone that we are using the best system available right now,” he said. “Even if someone is to die [in the lead up to voting], their name cannot now be changed from the list of registered voters that has [been published in the government gazette], but it will still be a very accurate voter registration.”

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