President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has said he does not support the amendment Speaker Mohamed Nasheed intends to propose that would allow the main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) to come to power without a coalition.
Speaking at the MDP's National Assembly on February 10, Nasheed had said the presidential election should be restructured to a 'first past the post' policy. Nasheed said that if all candidates receive less than 30 percent of the votes, a second-round must be held between the top two candidates. He said the people of the Maldives want the MDP government to remain in power and that this reform would allow MDP to maintain power.
In a press conference held Wednesday, while answering a reporter's question, the President said he did not support the proposed amendment allowing the candidates who win below 30 percent of votes to become president. He said his opinion was that the candidate must win at least 50 percent of the votes.
"I do not support the view that a person who wins 30 percent can come to power. I do not support that. A person who gets 50 percent of the people should come to power. That's what I believe," he said.
