The Committee on Decentralization has decided to finish their research into the amendment that seeks to amend the Decentralization Act where the government can take plots under an island's jurisdiction for project purposes by Thursday.
The committee previously decided to finish the work on the bill by today.
As the e-petition that was submitted to the Parliament calling for the bill filed by Thulhaadhoo Constituency MP Abdul Hannan has reached the threshold for debate, Vilufushi Constituency MP Hassan Waheed filed to postpone Parliament's recess during the meeting held today by the Committee on Decentralization. North Henveiru Constituency MP Ahmed Aifan backed the proposal, with it being passed unanimously by those who attended the meeting.
The Parliament's second session of 2026 was to come to an end yesterday. However, as important work is yet to be done, the Parliament passed the motion to postpone their recess to this coming Friday during a sitting held last Wednesday.
The number of people who signed a petition submitted via the Parliament's e-Petition portal opposing an amendment proposed to the Decentralization Act to allow land under council jurisdiction to be taken back by the state has risen above 2,100.
With this, the petition has become a special petition that mandates debate on the floor of the Parliament. This is the first petition to receive this number of signatures.
Being a special petition, it must be brought to the government's attention, and the issue of this petition must be placed on the agenda and debated in one of the upcoming three sittings.
This petition was submitted calling for the withdrawal of the amendment being brought to the law, proposed by independent member for Thulhaadhoo constituency Abdul Hannan Aboobakuru, allowing land and lagoons within council jurisdiction to be taken by the state for development projects by a decision of the Cabinet.
According to the Parliament's e-Petition rules, when a petition reaches 2,100 signatures (0.5 percent of the voting population), sending that petition to the relevant committee of the Parliament for review becomes mandatory.
Therefore, the petition submitted by Midhuam Saud states that this amendment strips away the authority of councilors directly elected by the vote of the citizens, transferring those powers to the Cabinet. Furthermore, as this bill facilitates taking action against councilors claiming they do not cooperate with government decisions, it was highlighted as something completely contrary to the spirit of the decentralization system.
The member who introduced the bill, Hannan, stated that the main purpose of this amendment is to ensure council cooperation within a legal framework to expedite government development projects. However, members of the opposition MDP and several island councils have also been expressing displeasure and passing resolutions against this amendment.
