MDP MPs Denies Boycotting Parliament

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has clarified that they did not boycott today’s session of the People’s Majlis, as the absence of a quorum hindered parliamentary proceedings.

According to one MDP MP, the party Parliamentary Group had not made a specific decision regarding their absence and that many members were not in Malé due to the public holiday declared in connection with Saturday’s election.

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Despite today being a public holiday, the parliamentary administration opted to proceed with the session. However, when the session commenced in the morning, only 15 members were present, falling short of the required quorum of 22 for a valid meeting.

Speaker Mohamed Nasheed, expressed his confusion over the members’ absence from the Majlis session. Nasheed has repeatedly voiced his concerns about the quorum not being met, which has been an ongoing issue.

Additionally, the Parliament’s agenda for the day included discussions on the letter sent by the Election Commission of the Maldives (ECM) regarding the resolution passed by the Parliament to hold a referendum on changing the existing system of government in the Maldives. 

Furthermore, a proposed constitutional amendment was under consideration, adding to the parliamentary matters that required attention. Maafannu North MP Imthiyaz Fahmy proposed that if an abstention vote was taken before the bill’s passage, no further vote would be necessary.