Male’ City Council to Assist Residents in Housing Complaints Process

The Male’ City Council has decided to provide assistance to residents who wish to submit complaints regarding the published list of beneficiaries for 4,000 housing units in Hulhumalé.

The complaint submission period, which began last Saturday, will remain open until 31 March.

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During a council meeting, members discussed concerns raised by individuals who were removed from the list. A motion to establish a support mechanism for filing complaints was approved by eight out of twelve councillors present. However, a separate motion proposing council participation in the evaluation process was unsuccessful, receiving only two votes.

Councillor Mohamed Saif Fathih expressed concerns that individuals should have been given an opportunity to respond before being removed from the list. He noted that some long-term residents had been excluded due to technicalities in their residency records. Among the affected individuals were those who had lived in rental housing for several years but were still disqualified, those who had left the Maldives for short periods for education or medical treatment but were deemed not to have met the 15-year residency requirement, and self-employed individuals who did not have formal employment records.

Saif also referenced an assurance from President Mohamed Muizzu that the Male City Council would be involved in the process, which he claimed had not been fulfilled.

The Housing Ministry reported that 2,695 applications were declared ineligible, with 424 individuals removed from the final list. Documentation issues related to proving 15 years of residency were cited as a primary reason for disqualification.

Following verification, the ministry released further details on the review process. A total of 4,939 applications were assessed. Of these, 3,721 applicants were on the three-bedroom flat list, with 1,423 scoring above 75 points. Meanwhile, 1,218 applicants were on the two-bedroom flat list, with 397 scoring above 73 points.