Govt. responds to Qasim, says fulfilling coalition agreement

The government on Thursday made a statement responding to Jumhoory Party (JP) leader and Maamigili MP Qasim Ibrahim’s claims that 90 percent of the coalition agreement remains unfulfilled.

During a press meeting held at the President’s Office, Spokesperson for the office Miuvaan Mohamed said that the government respected the agreement with all the coalition members, and was abiding by it as well.

“Though a specific number was said, the President is acting on the agreement with the parties in the coalition.”

He further reiterated that the agreement was being enforced and that discussions relating to it were ongoing with party leaders.

During an appearance on RaajjeTV’s Fashaairu earlier this week, Qasim said that politicians formed coalitions to win elections, but soon forgot about their coalition partners once they come to power.

“Once they come to power, the main ruling party rules as if a coalition doesn’t exist,” said Qasim.

He further expressed that though the main ruling party, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), never officially announced the coalition no longer existed, the bulk of what was agreed upon by coalition partners was nowhere close to getting implemented.

Moreover, he highlighted that this has been his experience forming coalitions with all parties in the past.

“The reality is not even 90 percent has been fulfilled. Only 10 percent has been fulfilled. But this administration is better than previous administrations,” he said.

Moreover, Qasim refrained from confirming whether the coalition would remain in place for the 2023 presidential elections.

JP is the second largest party in the current coalition government. Qasim’s spouse, Aishath Nahula serves as transport minister in the cabinet and many of JP’s members serve in top positions in the administration.