MDP will defy soldier vote barring on every front, says MP Fahmy

The opposition will defy the proposal to bar soldiers from voting, if it enters parliament, leader of the Maldivian Democratic Party’s (MDP) parliamentary group, Imthiyaz Fahmy said on Friday.

At a party rally in Foakaidhoo Island of Shaviyani Atoll, MP Fahmy said the proposal was indicative of diminishing support for the ruling coalition and the MDP would do everything it can to keep the bill from passing.

“State institutions have lost the trust and support of the citizens, I am confident that this trust and support will now be entirely placed in us” Fahmy said

The Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and its ally the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) together hold a majority in parliament. The bill would need two-thirds of all votes in favour of it to pass.

Defence Minister Adam Shareef Umar had on Tuesday night expressed intentions to have the Armed Forces Act amended so as to disallow soldiers from voting, citing a need to distance the armed-forces from political influences.

Said intentions have met considerable criticism from both the PPM, MDP, and Jumhooree Party (JP)

“You cannot take fundamental rights away, then attempt to call it nationalism and the State is obligated to defend the rights of its citizens under Article 18 of the Constitution – the government’s proposal is direct affront to this” a statement from the PPM’s faction led by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom said.

MP Abdulla Riyaz, aligned with opposition JP, described the proposal as a ‘cowardly’ move to further silence dwindling support for the government.

Fahmy then said that even though the state budget assigned to the current administration was the largest in history, President Abdulla Yameen has ‘resorted to selling off parts of the country’.

“Is there anyone who knows how many islands, how many lagoons have been sold? And to whom? No one has any insight into this, the lack of transparency and the extent of brazen defiance to regulations has made it impossible for anyone to know what really conspires in this country” he added.

The parliamentarian had further criticized the government’s tax hikes describing them as attempts to ‘rob’ the nation.