Ali Niyaz, former Chair of the Parliament’s Decentralization Committee has accused the government of attempting to weaken local councils and influence the upcoming local council elections by halting council functions and distributing jobs to gain political advantage.
Speaking at a press conference held at the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) office on Monday, Niyaz claimed the government is actively working to obstruct the work of elected councils to discredit them before the elections. He said the proposed amendment to the Decentralization Act, currently in Parliament, is part of this effort.
Niyaz argued that the amendment is designed specifically with the local council elections in mind and would only be acceptable if applied equally to all elections. He criticized a provision requiring councils to submit financial statements to the Finance Ministry upon request, noting that councils receive just five percent of the national budget while the remaining 95 percent is handled by government agencies. Holding councils accountable for only their share while ignoring the rest is misleading, he said.
He further alleged that the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) has realized through recent island-level campaigning that it cannot win the local elections unless it controls or disrupts the councils.
Niyaz also emphasized that over the past six years, many councils have independently raised funds and carried out development work in the absence of central government support. He said the government does not deserve credit for this progress.
He pointed out that most councils are currently held by the opposition, particularly the MDP, and accused the government of trying to dismantle the current system in order to gain an upper hand in the upcoming elections.
Niyaz had previously, last month, gone to Parliament with the initiative of the MDP Decentralization Committee to share concerns related to local councils. He said the proposed amendment is minor compared to a much larger resolution being prepared in Parliament aimed at dismantling the entire decentralization system.
Speaking at a press conference held at the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) office on Monday, Niyaz claimed the government is actively working to obstruct the work of elected councils to discredit them before the elections. He said the proposed amendment to the Decentralization Act, currently in Parliament, is part of this effort.
Niyaz argued that the amendment is designed specifically with the local council elections in mind and would only be acceptable if applied equally to all elections. He criticized a provision requiring councils to submit financial statements to the Finance Ministry upon request, noting that councils receive just five percent of the national budget while the remaining 95 percent is handled by government agencies. Holding councils accountable for only their share while ignoring the rest is misleading, he said.
He further alleged that the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) has realized through recent island-level campaigning that it cannot win the local elections unless it controls or disrupts the councils.
Niyaz also emphasized that over the past six years, many councils have independently raised funds and carried out development work in the absence of central government support. He said the government does not deserve credit for this progress.
He pointed out that most councils are currently held by the opposition, particularly the MDP, and accused the government of trying to dismantle the current system in order to gain an upper hand in the upcoming elections.
Niyaz had previously, last month, gone to Parliament with the initiative of the MDP Decentralization Committee to share concerns related to local councils. He said the proposed amendment is minor compared to a much larger resolution being prepared in Parliament aimed at dismantling the entire decentralization system.
