President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom proclaimed late Sunday that though opposition parties have formed a coalition, they would not be able to succeed as every top official of the coalition partners desire the seat of the president.
Speaking at the introduction ceremony of the government's coalition partner Maldives Development Alliance (MDA)'s candidates for the upcoming Local Council Elections, President Yameen declared that the opposition parties can only agree on teaming up against the government but nothing further.
“Every one of them wants to become the president. The state budget certainly cannot afford to have three or four presidents in one tenure, therefore they won’t get along well,” stated the president.
Noting that every coalition should have certain common grounds, President Yameen stated that all partners should respect the fact that the leading coalition party is the ruling party and, therefore, their vision towards development should be given a higher priority within the coalition.
Moreover, President Yameen highlighted that the Constitution also obligates the ruling party to lead the coalition and to hold the majority in parliament as a resemblance of public support to the government.
He also pointed out that government coalitions have failed with all other parties excluding MDA to date, as the other parties were unable to understand the true spirit of a coalition. He highlighted that the coalition with Jumhoory Party had failed due to disagreements formed over the position of parliament speaker.
President Yameen concluded his address reiterating his request to vote for the candidates of ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and MDA in the Local Council Elections.
Sign In