The President of main-ruling Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) and the speaker of parliament, Mohamed Nasheed has stated that he does not expect the ruling coalition partner Jumhooree Party (JP) and opposing Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) to contest in the upcoming local council election.
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Nasheed said that there is no doubt MDP will win with a higher margin in the local council election. He further said that they are contesting with the confidence that MDP will win over 60% of seats in the election.
Nasheed added that he does not believe JP and PPM will contest in the election, and said neither party has the strength and capability to contest in the election.
“I have no doubt that we will win 60% of seats and we are facing this election with this confidence. We do not anticipate that other parties will contest in the election, especially PPM - they do not have the capacity to contest in the election. I do not see Jumhooree Party contesting and fielding candidates either; I do not believe they have the competence, and neither do we see them doing what is required to put forward candidates," said Nasheed.
The former president added that many islands had a high voter turnout in the MDP primary held Friday, and said these are the numbers that would win the upcoming election for MDP.
When questioned if a coalition will be formed with any party for the local council election, Nasheed said no coalition will be formed and that the party aims to win the maximum amount of seats for MDP.
Both JP and PPM have announced that they will be competing for all the seats in the local council election slated for April 4, 2020. While both parties prepare for their primaries, many have submitted applications to contest for party tickets.
