The main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has said 17,156 people registered with other parties are on the MDP voter register.
A document publicized by MDP's Deputy Chairman Ibrahim Waheed said the party's voter register for its internal elections earlier in April had 93,440 members. However, this list includes 17,156 people registered for other parties with the Election Commission (EC).
According to Waheed, among those of other parties, most belong to the opposing Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM). While 6,357 PPM members are on the MDP register, 3,788 members from Jumhooree Party are also on the register. In addition, 1,761 MDA members, 1,048 MTD members, and 1,029 MRM members are also on the party's voter register.
Waheed said 24,033 people who do not belong to any party are also on the MDP register. Some members listed as MDP representatives on local councils and Women's Development Committees (WDC) on the party's website belong to other parties, he added.
In a letter to MDP's Chairperson Fayyaz Ismail on December 19, the party's President and Parliament Speaker, Mohamed Nasheed, expressed concern over the expulsion of nearly 40,000 people from the MDP voter register.
In response to Nasheed's concerns, the party tweeted a link to the "Political Party Register Complaint Form" and asked party members to complete the form and submit it to the Election Commission if they had been transferred to another party without their knowledge. The complaint will be addressed by the Election Commission, and the member will be returned to the MDP, it said.
