Elections Commission (EC) has said today that they support bringing down the number of parliamentarians to 77, and capping it at that number.
Elections Commission (EC) has said today that they support bringing down the number of parliamentarians to 77, and capping it at that number.
EC proposed this in today's meeting of the Parliament's Committee on Independent Institutions, where discussions were held on the motion to cap parliamentarian numbers.
EC President Fuad Thaufeeq said that as the law stands now, the number of constituencies in parliament will continue to increase as the population of the country rises. However, he pointed out that this is not what other countries practice, and asserted that the best course of action would be to introduce a cap on total number of parliamentarians.
Based on researches conducted by the commission, they proposed to amend the Constitution to cap parliament member numbers at 77.
Fuad reminded that this is the number of parliamentarians serving in 2008.
If this number is considered, and two seats are assigned to every atoll, 35 seats will remain. These remaining seats can be distributed based on population in different areas, Fuad proposed.
"Then Haa Alif Atoll will, with those two seats, get a total of four seats. Male', with those two seats, will be dedicated an additional eight seats. Addu, with the two seats and the additional three, will get five seats," Fuad explained.
Fuad said that when the total number is not determined, there has been instances where entire constituencies had to be changed. However, if divided in consideration of 77 seats, then voting can proceed until 2050 without any additional changes to constituencies, he said.
Fuad went on to say the Elections Commission has no objections if the parliament decides to act in a way that differs from what they have proposed. However, he assured that through various formulas, the EC had determined that 77 is the most ideal number, even considering international standards.
"Our stand is that it should be capped. Whether it is at 77, 65 or 75. For it to be capped, and each atoll to get 2 seats, and for the rest to be distributed according to population density," he said.
EC Vice President Ali Nashath said that the commission had focused on the composition of USA's House when they had come up with this proposal.
Nashath also emphasized the importance of two members representing each atoll.
He opined that although the Constitution states that there must be a multi party system in the Maldives, the legal framework is not designed in this manner.
He said that in some countries, specific numbers of seats are assigned to political parties, and urged the committee to consider this when they come to a decision.
"For example, in Fiji, the parliament is entirely allocated to parties. Citizens have to vote for the parties. In some countries, they allocate a part of the parliament," he said.
The committee has also met with Maldivian Democratic Party and People's National Congress in relation to this matter. Both concur that the number of parliamentarians need to be capped, although they did not specify a number.
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