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No work to be done with Yameen, says Pres

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has said he would not work together with opposition leader and former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom.

President Solih is seeking re-election and will contest against Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed to gain the main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)'s Presidential Ticket in the party's presidential primary slated for January 28.

In a campaign rally held Friday night at Male' Artificial Beach, President Solih responded to Nasheed's remarks that the opposing PPM and President Yameen were better than Solih in every way, except for their 'India Out' campaign. Nasheed said Yameen was well-educated and intelligent and, therefore, much better than President Solih.

At Friday's rally, President Solih said Yameen was not "OK" in response to Nasheed's remarks.

"President Yameen is not okay. There will be no work to be done with him," he said at a rally attended by a large number of supporters.

The president said the country had witnessed in the past what would happen in the Maldives if a party other than the MDP was in power. The president also asked the MDP members to take advantage of the opportunity to work with him to achieve further development for the country, as the current government had started more development projects than any other past government.

The president added that the MDP has a historic moment ahead of it today. It is an opportunity for the MDP to get a second term, he said. Referring to the MDP primary, the president said with confidence that the primary is already over, and he will win it by a large margin.