Ali Nizar, who has been re-elected for a second term as Mayor of Addu via Saturday's election, stated last night that a vast majority had voted against the combining of the Presidential and Parliamentary Elections being held on the same day in order to save Maldives and that its benefits will be apparent.
During the rally held at Artificial Beach to celebrate the success of the referendum vote and the Local Council Election, Nizar stated that the current government does not want to be fair towards the citizens.
Nizar said that he believes that the local councils should operate cooperatively with the government but that does not mean the islands should be run in a way that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu pleases. He also said that the public does not want the islands to run as per the government's and cabinet's wishes, and that there would be no admission as such.
"The People's National Congress (PNC) wants to act as such or the thinking of certain individuals are as such. And so, the public needs to step away from such dangerous thought processes and to prepare for the coming Presidential Election," said Nizar.
Mayor of Addu Nizar went on to say that his biggest concern was whether there may be a change in the recent result. However, he stated that it is not because he may not be elected and it is because Maldives' future may not be realised.
"When looking at recent events in Maldives, if Maldives' system of governance is built upon a version of dictatorship, it cannot be saved. There are much larger countries, of which much larger people have been experiencing a dictatorship for the last 100, 200 years," said Nizar.
According to Nizar, Maldives has seen development up until now due to the efforts of every leader having gone to the citizens every five years.
As per Nizar, the only way atolls can be governed is by giving power to the people. He said that islands cannot be developed according to how Male' deems it.
"The people in the atolls are experiencing difficult times. We cannot even fulfill basic rights. There is no proper path," stated Nizar with concern.
"We had to go and vote for the Addu City election after having not slept for 48 hours. There was no electricity in Addu for six hours. We have been begging for many years."
