Nazil: Gov ‘playing’ with councils, but doing nothing to cut political posts

While the government has been “playing” with council membership to reduce the state’s expenses, it hasn’t been doing anything to reduce the high number of political appointments, says Ibrahim Nazil, the leader of the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s parliamentary group.

During a debate on Wednesday on the government’s bill to amend the Decentralization Act in order to limit council byelections to twice a year, Nazil, who represents the South Hithadhoo constituency, said he does not believe reducing council membership to the most responsible approach.

He said that all non-MDP administrations have consistently “played” with councils. He accused the incumbent People’s National Congress (PNC) administration of attempting to sideline councilors elected by the people.

“These changes are apparently being rolled out in light of the current economic situation. I don’t know. While they play with these figures [of councilors], I don’t see any talk here about maintaining political appointments at a certain standard,” he said.

Nazil questioned the government’s intention in “strong-arming” councilors elected to serve the people, while political appointments have risen from 700 to 2,700.

At a PNC rally earlier this month, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu suggested that the number of council seats should be reduced in islands with smaller populations. He said that he does not believe it will disrupt the provision of public services.

However, the government has yet to submit any legislature to that affect.

In Wednesday’s debate, Nazil alleged that the proposed move was designed to silence the voice of the people.