Petition Opposing Government Land Reclamation Bill Approved by Committee for Parliament Debate

The Petitions Committee has unanimously decided to request that a petition opposing proposed amendments to the Decentralisation Act be debated in Parliament within the next three sittings.

The petition, submitted through Parliament’s e-petition portal by social activist Midhuam Saud, has reached the threshold required for it to be classified as a special petition. Under parliamentary rules, a petition receiving at least 2,100 signatures, equivalent to 0.5 per cent of the voting population, must be referred to the relevant parliamentary committee for consideration.

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The committee decided to bring the petition to the attention of the Speaker of Parliament after reaching the specified amount of signatures, and request its inclusion on the agenda of one of the next three sittings. It will also seek the official position of the Local Government Authority (LGA) on the petition.

The petition is the first to reach the 0.5 per cent threshold since Parliament introduced its e-petition system. Under parliamentary rules, petitions reaching this threshold must be debated on the floor of the Majlis.

The proposed amendment was submitted by PNC-backed Thulhaadhoo Constituency independent MP Abdul Hannan Aboobakuru and received its preliminary debate last week.

Hannan has argued that the amendment would facilitate island development and national projects by preventing political disagreements between the central government and local councils from delaying development. The proposed changes would give the government the authority to acquire land within council jurisdictions when required for government development projects.

The proposal has faced opposition from several MDP MPs and island councils, with a number of councils reportedly passing resolutions against the amendment. Opposition MPs have also raised constitutional concerns during parliamentary debates, arguing that the bill should not proceed if it conflicts with the Constitution.