President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on Friday night emphasised the necessity of securing a second term in order to carry out his developmental agenda for the Maldives.
Speaking at the campaign rally held in Raa atoll, Meedhoo, Solih said that he wants to continue providing essential services to the Maldivian people, without leaving out any island or considering the popular political ideology of the locals.
He said that his campaign for a second term as president is driven by his goal of bringing peace and fulfilment to the people.
Highlighting some of the developmental work carried out in Raa atoll during his administration, the president said that when he assumed office, only a handful of the 15 inhabited islands had access to basic services. His goal is to provide services in an inclusive and wholesome manner, he said.
He reiterated the importance of winning a second term in order to ensure continuity of the developmental work he had initiated in different sectors.
Solih assured that even though he works alongside people from different political ideologies, he can still prioritise the Maldivian Democratic Party's (MDP) political ideologies and beliefs.
He said he is running for a second term to ensure the party's victory and that the numerous public engagements he has held during his presidency have made him confident that the party would win the presidential election scheduled for September 2023, by a huge margin.
He noted that it was not easy to win over 50 percent of the popular vote without a coalition, given the political divide in the Maldives. He said while MDP is indeed the biggest party in the Maldives, they have to question whether it is worth it to be excluded because the party could not collect the required percent of votes if they ran alone.
"Given the political divide in the country, it is not easy to go to the polls alone without forming an alliance and getting 50 percent," he said.
"We could get 48 percent votes. We can even win 110,000 votes and 120,000 votes. But should these people be out on the streets again? This is the question that needs to be raised," he said, referring to being metaphorically out of office and in the streets if they do not win the election.
Solih urged everyone to reflect on their experiences before casting their votes in the MDP presidential primary. He said the party members remember how they won the first ever democratic elections held in 2008 under the new constitution, and that they also recall how the party's first administration came to an end within three years.
He said they will not be able to forget the state of affairs in the Maldives between 2012 and 2018.
"Violence, fear. Do we want to revert back to that tyranny or live peacefully," he asked.
The President then detailed the work being done on some of Raa atoll's islands, as well as some of the government's projects. All the pledges made to the Maduvvari constituency have almost been fulfilled, he said.
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