Parliament has approved the bill and amended the Decentralization Act in the Constitution to legally declare GDh. Thinadhoo as a city. Under the amended act, the name of Thinadhoo Island Council has been designated as the Thinadhoo City Council.
Gaafu Dhaal atoll Thinadhoo has been officially declared a city following the ratification of the amendment proposed for the Decentralization Act.
President Dr. Mohamed Muizz ratified the bill amending the law on Tuesday last week, following which he designated the Huvadhoo Atoll Thinadhoo Council as Thinadhoo City Council. He directed all correspondence addressed to the council to use the number 415, per the numbering system for state agencies.
While the former government granted Thinadhoo with the title of a city ahead of the approach of the presidential election, the council had some concerns about its constitutional status. Subsequently, the council submitted their concerns to the parliament.
In order to resolve the concern in the law which hinders Thinadhoo to proceed as a city, Thulhaadhoo constituency member, Hisaan Hussein had proposed an amendment to Section (d) of Article 51 of the Decentralization Act (Act No. 07/2010) on February 7 this year.
The amendment dictates that if the island has been changed to a city, the island council voted to run the city must be transformed into a city council prior to the change. It was also mandated to replace the title of President and Vice President of the council to Mayor and Deputy Mayor. As stipulated in the amendment, this change will apply until the term of the concerned island council expires.
This amendment to the Decentralization Act further states states that if the city is formed inclusive of all the islands in the administrative area, the Atoll Council serving the area will be nullified from that point on. Additionally, the projects, services and areas supervised by the Atoll Council will be reassigned to the City Council.
The concerns of the council following the announcement by the former government on its decision to reform the island to a city, was the different ways the state institutions address them, giving rise to various confusions arising in the budgets, staff remunerations and additional services within the council. As the council president has not been established as the Mayor, that issue was also raised to the Decentralization Committee.
However, the Local Government Authority (LGA) had remarked that the Thinadhoo Island Council cannot be declared as a City Council due to restrictions in the Constitution. LGA further stressed that even if the island becomes a city in the middle of its council term, the city will be supervised by the island council as stipulated in Article 51 of the Decentralization Act.
The amendment to this Act was proposed due to this.
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