Fayyaz accused the government of reducing the number of councilors and amending laws to strip councils of the powers vested in them by the people.
The government is attempting to erode public trust in local councils, opposition, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Chaiperson Fayyaz Ismail said today.
Speaking during a panel discussion at MDP's "Laamarukazee Gulhun" conference in Haa Dhaalu atoll Kulhudhuffushi, Fayyaz responded to questions from island councilors.
He accused the government of reducing the number of councilors and amending laws to strip councils of the powers vested in them by the people.
"[They are] trying to show that councilors as ineffective, a wasteful expense, corrupt, and more interested in personal trips and entertainment than serving the people," Fayyaz said.
He added that MDP plans to counter these claims by informing the public of the truth.
When asked why amendments to the Infrastructure Planning and Administration Act and the Decentralisation Act were not blocked in Parliament, Fayyaz said MDP’s 12 MPs were unable to stop ruling party People’s National Congress (PNC)’s supermajority.
However, he emphasized that PNC members were also elected by the people and must listen to the public to find a solution.
“Our intention is to maintain the current number of councilors, Women’s Development Committee (WDC) members, and to keep WDC members as full-time members,” Fayyaz said.
According to MDP, the decentralization system, significantly revised by their government in 2019, is now at risk of "collapsing" due to recent amendments made by the current administration.
However, the MDP has described the system as “collapsing” with the changes brought by the government.
President Dr Mohamed Muizzu ratified amendments to the Infrastructure Planning and Administration Act and the Decentralization Act last month.
MDP said that these changes allow the government to plan out land utilization in islands without local participation, violating the principles of decentralization.
The government's decision to reduce the number of council members has drawn further criticism from MDP.
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