President: Biggest purpose of Kudagiri is to facilitate a healthy and tightknit community

The biggest purpose of the Kudagiri Picnic Island is to facilitate a healthy and tightknit community, states President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

He made the remark in his speech at the opening of Kudagiri on Saturday morning.

Speaking at the ceremony, President Solih said the development of any nation depends on the mental and physical wellbeing of its people.

As such, maintenance of societal bonds and communal peace is one of this administration’s biggest goals, he said.

President Solih noted that the Maldivian people are inhabitants of an island nation, and that the peace, serenity, and contentment of an island lifestyle is deeply linked to their everyday life.

“The sandy beaches and blude lagoons of these islands aren’t things we want to move away from. These aren’t things we want to give up. Whether we live in a rural island or in Male’, this is ingrained in our DNA,” he said.

President Solih said that though the people living in many of the islands continue to enjoy such pleasures, it had been denied to the people in the congested Male’ for years.

“With people migrating from other islands, Male’ is now full and overflowing. It has been ages since the residents of Male’ have enjoyed the pleasure of these beaches,” he said.

President Solih said that he has not experienced the pleasure of beaches in Male’ in the 50 or so years he has been living in the city.  He noted that people had gone to Kuda Bandos for picnics to relax and rewind back then.

He said that the then-administration took Kuda Bandos from Male’ residents some ten years back, which has been an issue of great concern.

He said that the biggest purpose of reclaiming and developing Kudagiri is to offer peace and happiness to the residents of Male’.

“We still need to add a lot of facilities the people need in Kudagiri. However, my hope is, the people who visit this island will receive a measure of contentment with the efforts made so far,” he said.

He thanked the Planning Ministry, Housing Development Corporation (HDC), Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC), State Electric Company (STELCO), Fenaka Corporation, Waste Management Corporation (WAMCO), Male’ Water and Sewerage Company (MWSC), Maldives National Association of Construction Industry (MACI), and private parties for their support in developing Kudagiri.

He also thanked Vice President Faisal Naseem for his tireless efforts in closely monitoring the project.

The Vice President worked tirelessly on this until the very last day, he said.

President Solih urged picnic-goers to respect each other, and ensure Kudagiri is a place everyone can enjoy. He said that though HDC has a dedicated staff to maintain security and cleanliness in the island, it is also the civic duty of picnic-goers to maintain the cleanliness and peace in Kudagiri.

He also asked HDC to make improvements in light of the feedback they receive from picnic-goers.

“I am sure that once people start coming here, we will experience the changes the people who need better services require,” he said.

President Solih said that Kudagiri opened Saturday with modern facilities. He said he had received different messages, the biggest of which had been the question why the entire island hadn’t been made a ‘smoking free’.

He said that Kudagiri had two smoking areas.

“Smoking is banned the entire island, except for that,” he said.

Kudagiri was officially opened by President Solih. He was accompanied by First Lady Fazna Ahmed, VP Faisal, and other top government officials.