Jumhooree Party’s (JP) council meeting concluded today that they will not be forming an alliance with either of the candidates currently running for the second round of the election.
In the meeting presided by JP’s leader, and their presidential candidate MP Qasim Ibrahim, the party decided to be silent in the second round and work towards moving their party forward in other areas. This decision was made with the consensus of 68 members from the 70 that attended the council meeting.
Both the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the People's National Congress (PNC) and Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) coalition had approached JP to seek its support for their respective candidates in the second round. Representatives from both parties had visited Qasim at Sun Island Resort to discuss potential alliances. President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih visited on behalf of MDP.
In the council meeting presided by Qasim, he said the party's talking points while they were campaigning still remains true. He said it did not make sense for them to let go of those values and back another candidate.
Therefore, the party will remain independent with no ties to any party in the second round, he said.
During a press conference following the council meeting, Qasim said that the increased Indian presence in the Maldives was a result of agreements made by past administrations, including those of former presidents Abdulla Yameen and Mohamed Nasheed, as well as current President Solih's administration. He expressed his dissatisfaction with the agreements made by the current government with India. Qasim added that one of the reasons they decided not to form an alliance with the PPM/PNC coalition was due to allegations of widespread corruption during their administration.
Qasim received 5,000 votes during the first round of the presidential election. This is the lowest number of votes he has ever received when running for office.
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