President ratifies amendment to hold elections amidst state of public health emergency

The President, on Thursday, ratified the amendment made to the 'Special Bill for the Local Council Elections 2020', which enables the Elections Commission (EC) to conduct the already-delayed polls during the ongoing state of public health emergency.

Submitted by parliamentary representative for Hulhumale' constituency Ali Niyaz and approved by 38 parliamentarians that joined the vote, the amendment grants EC permission to hold the election, even whilst a state of public health emergency is enacted, provided that safety guidelines imposed by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) are followed.