Democrats MPs make U-turn, call for system change vote postponement

Lawmakers from the Democrats, the chief advocates of a change in the system of governance in Maldives to a parliamentary system, now say that the referendum to decide on the change cannot be held before October 30 – as called for in their resolution.

On the agenda for Tuesday’s sitting was the letter submitted by the Elections Commission (EC) regarding the referendum. The commission asked the Parliament to clarify the question that will be on the ballot paper for the referendum. The commission also said they would make arrangements and give an exact date for the referendum later.

During the debate on the letter, West Henveiru MP Hassan Latheef, the interim chairperson of Democrats, said there was a lot of awareness programs that must be run before a referendum can be held.

He said that the Parliament hasn’t done sufficient work on that front, despite having passed the resolution two weeks back.

“There’s a short time left now. To get this done and hold the referendum – whether on October 28 or October 31. Therefore, in light of all this, I believe we must consider whether we will be able to properly explain the system and its key features to the people,” he said.

Hassan said that this must be taken into account when making a decision on the referendum.

“I find it important that we decide a later date after considering all this,” he said.

Speaker Mohamed Nasheed responded that though the Parliament had passed a deadline, the EC had informed it cannot give a specific date until the Parliament conducts necessary work.

He said that the deadline can be amended.

“I believe you; honorable MPs and the Elections Commission can come to an agreement regarding the time frame and the deadline,” he said.

Deputy Speaker Eva Abdulla, another member of the Democrats, said that in addition to raising public awareness, talks must also be held between parties before a referendum can be held.

Eva said that they had been unable to hold the talks with the two main parties – MDP and PPM – busy with the presidential election.

She suggested a postponement to the referendum.

“There’s just two weeks left to a referendum, given the deadline. Is this possible in this timeframe?” she asked.

“Its not just the work of the Parliament and the logistics from the Elections Commission that we must consider. The real question is; have we sufficiently informed the people?”

Both Hassan and Eva agreed the referendum cannot be held this month.

Nasheed said that it was already clear to the EC, and that he believes the commission will give a date, once the Parliament completes its work.

“I believe the issue of the date is already decided. The Elections Commission has clearly stated that this cannot be done on the 29th. So, a date will be decided later,” he said.