‘Second-class treatment’ for Addu, states disgruntled Mayor

Addu City Mayor Ali Nizar has hit back at the State's lack of response to the electricity crisis in Addu, stating that the State treats Addu as 'second class' when it comes to resolving and addressing the continued issue of powercuts in the city.

Mayor Nizar stated this in a post on X after powercuts have once again become common in Addu, this time due to a technical issue in an engine.

"When Male' had a five hour powercut, it was given the status of a crisis and assurance was given that it be resolved at the earliest. It is unacceptable that us Addu residents are considered second-class. Nor is it just," Nizar said, referring to the island-wide powercut in Male' on June 1.

Mayor Nizar questioned the sincerity of the government’s efforts to address Addu’s ongoing electricity challenges, noting that the problem has persisted for nearly two years.

Fenaka Corporation stated yesterday that a technical issue in one of engines powering Addu has now been resolved, and electricity services have been resumed. However, residents of Addu have been raising concerns about the inconveniences faced due to repeated powercuts in the connected islands of Addu over the past three days.

"Every hour, parts of Addu are facing power outages. Businesses and general public's property is getting damaged. Public services are getting interrupted. Even today, Addu City Council also lost power twice during official hours," Nizar said.