The parliament on Wednesday passed the sunset bill to postpone the local council and Women’s Development Committee (WDC) elections, a legislative remedy to resolve the elections delayed due to the public health emergency declared over the COVID-19 outbreak.
Both local councils and WDC elections were initially slated for April 4, 2020. With the bill’s passage, the local elections are now postponed until it is safe to hold a nationwide election.
The bill entitled “The Special Bill for the Local Council Elections 2020", was submitted by the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s member for Thulhaadhoo constituency, Hisaan Hussain, after the Elections Commission (EC) submitted the matter to the parliament over election delays amid the COVID-19 outbreak. The bill was passed with a majority of 63 votes in favour, following amendments by the parliament's Independent Institutions Committee.
The sunset bill will become law once ratified by the president. Once law, the Act will become invalid after newly elected councilors and Women’s Development Committee (WDC) members assume office.
Typically, sunset laws are temporary and cease to have an effect after a specific date, unless further legislative action is taken to extend the law. As per the approved bill, the local council and WDC elections must be held before January 6, 2021.
According to the bill, the Elections Commission can only begin preparations for the local council and WDC elections once the presently-declared state of public health emergency is over and only after relevant authorities determine that there is no longer a public health risk to hold the elections. In preparation for the polls, the Elections Commission is required to update the voter registry, conduct re-registration and reallocation of ballot boxes.
Despite the election delay, the bill states that candidates who have gone through the application process and were already approved for the April 18 elections will be allowed to run. The bill further states that those candidates who automatically stand to win their seats due to being the only contender will assume office, once the local elections are held, along with the newly elected members.
Once the law comes into effect, the suspensions of civil servants running for council seats will become invalid. These civil servants will be able to return to their former job positions, but will not be able to campaign until they are placed under suspension again, once a date for the election is set.
The government had also submitted to the parliament amendments to the Constitution over the matter, seeking a constitutional remedy regarding current councillors’ term of office. The length of time for councillors’ term in office is stipulated in the Maldivian Constitution, with presently elected councillors’ term ending on June 3, 2020. The parliament is yet to decide on the matter.
In response to Health Protection Agency’s (HPA) declaration of a state of public health emergency on March 12 over the COVID-19 pandemic, Elections Commission on March 13, announced its decision to delay the local elections to April 18, citing concerns over public safety if an election were to be held amidst the virus outbreak.
The elections watchdog then lodged a case at the High Court on April 15, seeking an indefinite delay on the polls.
After withdrawing the case from the High Court, the elections body then submitted the case to the apex court before it withdrew once again and submitted the matter to the parliament, seeking a legislative remedy regarding the elections.
Maldives’ capital Malé, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, has recorded a significant increase in COVID-19 since recording its first local transmission on April 15. A Maldivian woman who sought assistance from a flu clinic in Malé after developing symptoms tested positive for the virus.
The Health Protection Agency (HPA) on Wednesday announced the decision to extend the greater Male' region lockdown for an additional 14 days over an increase in COVID-19 cases reported in the capital, following which the Ministry of Health on Thursday extended the state of public health emergency until the end of May.
Presently, Maldives records 396 confirmed and 378 active cases of COVID-19, with a total of 17 recoveries. The country recorded its first virus death, an 83-year-old local female, on Wednesday evening.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. The new strain of novel coronavirus has infected over 3.2 million people and claimed over 228,800 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, more than one million people have recovered.
Sign In
