Senate failed Yameen’s “test”: MP Ahmed

Mahibadhoo MP Ahmed "Tom" Thoriq said that the joint senate of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and the People's National Congress (PNC) have "failed" as it did not endorse the former President Abdulla Yameen's please to boycott the presidential elections.

Following Yameen's unsuccessful appeal at the Supreme Court regarding his candidacy rejection, the former president directed the PPM/PNC coalition to consider boycotting the elections if the senate believed that his fundamental right to participate has been infringed.

Thoriq made this statement after the opposition coalition's senate turned down Yameen's plea and instead voted to endorse Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, the Mayor of Malé City and PNC's candidate, for the presidency.

At a rally held in front of PPM's main office on Tuesday evening, August 8, Thoriq strongly criticized the senate members for their decision. The MP emphasized that Yameen's appeal had been made in the face of the denial of his fundamental right, the Election Commission's rejection, and the recent passing of his mother.

According to the MP, the senate mistreated Yameen with their decision to contend in the elections, especially at the time of great distress for the former president.

“They pretend this is solely about good governance and advocate for Yameen's release on every time, but when Yameen put them to test, they said no," criticized the MP.

The MP further said that the notice sent by Yameen highlighted a direct matter whether the senate would determine if Yameen's fundamental rights had been infringed upon and if his sentence was justifiable.

"They [the senate] handled Yameen's notice poorly," Thoriq said. "The party was nurtured under Yameen's leadership; it's not easy to overlook what these members said about the former president."

Thoriq said that the members might find it challenging to suddenly boycott an election for which they had invested significant effort in the preceding weeks. He also highlighted that the coalition had a chance to explore alternative solutions by engaging in discussions with Yameen, yet the senate's chose to dismiss the former president's appeal.

The MP appealed to Yameen's supporters within PPM not to disregard his leadership and urged the members to prevent the party from encountering the same situations that other political parties have faced in the past.