Former Attorney General Dr. Mohamed Munavvaru, who had previously announced his intention to contest the presidency in 2023, has formally given his endorsement to the candidate of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and People’s National Congress (PNC) coalition, Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.
Dr. Munavvaru was expected to travel to Addu City with his team to join Dr. Muizzu in campaign activities on Monday, August 21.
The former AG, who retracted his decision to run for office, cited the decision was for the greater good of the public and reaffirmed his endorsement of Dr. Muizzu.
“This is not a game we are playing, it is about offering solutions to the public through serious policies, but we lack an environment to communicate it to the citizens right now,” Dr. Muizzu said, explaining his decision to back out from running in the election this year.
Dr. Munavvaru, a local of Addu City Meedhoo, served as the Attorney General for 10 years during former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s administration.
While confirming his endorsement of Dr. Muizzu, the former AG said that the opposition coalition’s candidate was the most capable candidate to lead the nation from the eight contenders in this year’s presidential race.
Dr. Munavvaru, along with PPM, was one of the most vocal advocates against International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea’s (ITLOS) decision in the Maldives-Mauritius boundary demarcation case, which concluded in the transfer of the Chagos Archipelago area under Mauritian administration. A significant factor influencing the Dr. Munavvaru's endorsement of Dr. Muizzu was his dissatisfaction with the present government's involvement in the ITLOS decision.
“What is important for me would be issues of national interest. And one of the main issues here is the current leaders relinquishing part of the Maldivian sovereign territory. Besides this, PPM/PNC is the only coalition capable of addressing the [ITLOS] issue and other matters. I am certain they [PPM/PNC] would resolve such matters,” Dr. Munavvaru said.
Dr. Munavvaru was the president of the current ruling party, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), in 2007. He however, decided to leave MDP after heavily criticizing the party and joined Jumhooree Party. Following his exit from Jumhooree Party, he later went on to establish the Maldives Reform Movement (MRM). However, the Elections Commission (EC) dissolved the MRM, citing that the party did not meet the necessary legal prerequisites.
