Former Attorney General Dr. Mohamed Munavvar has indicated that he may contest this year's presidential election.
Dr. Munavvar hinted that he would contest the presidential election in a post published on his Facebook page. He was not reachable via phone when AVAS attempted to contact him for comments.
The former PG actively campaigned for the main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) President and Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed for the party's presidential primary earlier in January. Up until the MDP Presidential Primary, Dr. Munavvar, who has been MDP's President in the past, had not been active in political activities in recent years. Recently, he has been heavily critical of the government's policies. He criticized the government's policies on the Chagos issue and said the government must change its policy on the matter.
Three political figures have thus far announced their intent to contest the September presidential election. They are President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Maldives National Party's President Mohamed Nazim, and former Home Minister Umar Naseer. At its National Conference held last month, Jumhooree Party also approved recommending the party's Council to field a candidate for the election.
Although the opposing Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) had handed over its presidential ticket to their leader, former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Qayyoom, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison on a money laundering and bribery conviction, thereby barring him from running for president.
