Transparency Maldives urges authorities to address vote buying allegations in parliamentary election

Male, Apr 22 (PTI) Transparency Maldives has urged the authorities to address allegations of vote buying in the just-concluded parliamentary election won by Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu-led People's National Congress party.

The NGO also urged the authorities to address the abuse of state resources and barriers to women’s equal participation in politics, adhadhu.com news portal reported on Monday.

In a thread on X after sharing a late Sunday night statement on the observation of the election's administrative matters, Transparency Maldives (TM) called on all actors to address the problem of vote buying and the lack of political and campaign finance transparency.

"TM continued to observe the abuse of state resources through the campaign period, including the inauguration or completion of projects," the NGO said.

The election was generally well-administered, the NGO said in the statement released last night. However, Transparency said it observed several attempts to unduly influence voting in recent days.

Transparency's statement noted large projects announced by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and state institutions in the 48 hours before polls opened.

"Ceremonies held to mark the awarding or inauguration of at least six development projects, worth over MVR 680 million, posted on the official social media accounts of state-owned enterprises and government ministries with 48 hours to go for Election Day," the statement noted.

The ruling PNC won 68 out of 93 seats in Sunday's polls and its coalition partners Maldives National Party (MNP) and Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) won one and two seats, respectively, which is more than two-thirds of the Parliament, landing the party an easy supermajority with the power to amend the Constitution.

The Transparency statement also expressed concern with the government transferring the jurisdiction of different lagoons and uninhabited islands to the administrative areas of three islands four days before the elections, adhadhu.com reported.

The statement about State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and government agencies unduly influencing the elections came after the government awarded several projects to the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) in the four days before the polls.

It also expressed concern over the "amendments brought on Election Day to two administrative areas by Presidential Decree".

Other concerns included an announcement 20 hours before polls opened to provide housing and housing loans to those who were “deprived of” housing under the previous government’s social housing projects.

Transparency highlighted a press release by the Housing Ministry to specifically provide housing to those who did not secure housing under the TATA housing flats in 2010.

Transparency deployed observers across the country and abroad in Colombo, Sri Lanka and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for the parliamentary elections. PTI SCY AKJ SCY SCY