Former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has called for an investigation into the Mohamed Muizzu administration’s spending on parliamentary campaigning.
Speaking at a Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) campaign rally for the upcoming parliamentary elections in Addu, the former president said the current administration has not properly managed the budget over the past five months.
“At one moment you [the President] will say there is no money, the government is completely bankrupt, the companies have no money. Yet we see within these past five months, as we take a look at the state budget, [Political] positions have been increased and [their] salaries are being paid,” he said.
Referring to a report published in a local newspaper yesterday, Solih said if MVR 100 million was spent on the campaign, it should be investigated.
“… if expenditure was from the state budget, with the money you paid as taxes, then it should be investigated,” he said.
“When MDP came to power in 2018, the state’s financial situation was precarious, and yet, with careful efforts, we overcame the challenge,” Solih said.
He went on to reiterate that, during the first three months of the administration, he secured US$200 million in grants and US$800 million in conditional finance to implement development projects initiated by his administration — he additionally recalled that the US dollar shortage was also addressed and that projects continued without interruption.
The MDP parliamentary campaign spokesperson, Ahmed Easa, on Thursday, alleged that around MVR 100 million of the state budget had been spent on parliamentary campaigning for Muizzu administration aligned candidates. Information gathered by the media and other sources indicated that President Muizzu had spent at least MVR 100 million on the parliamentary election campaign at the state expense, MDP clarified.
The President is using his influence to campaign with the public funds and, as such, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the Parliament should look into the matter, Easa said.
Solih also said that while the MDP was in full support the Addu bridge project proposed by President Muizzu during his presidential election campaign, work also needs to be done on economic growth.
“This administration has made promises. I think there are talks of connecting Hulhudhoo-Meedhoo and Hithadhoo. Whatever you do, there should be order. They will have our full support for it. They will have the support of all our Members of Parliament, ” he said.
The first order of business, however, should be to create jobs and bring economic vibrance to Addu; work which the MDP had been doing for the past five years, Solih said.
“I think the work we have started is to provide people with homes here, and then there will be people who will travel over the bridge… Ports were built for that purpose, land was reclaimed for that purpose, roads are being built for that purpose, the airport is being developed for that purpose,” he said.
Solih said the MDP’s plan was to combine the construction of the bridge with driving significant economic activities in Addu and called on the residents to bring back a majority of seats in parliament for the MDP so that these objectives would be achieved.
“I would like to call on this administration today to continue these projects without delay. If you want votes from here, what you should do is to do things that are aspirational for the people and beneficial for the people,” Solih said.
In his speech, Solih criticised the Muizzu administration for halting development projects initiated by the MDP-led government in Addu.