Malé, Maldives – Former President, Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has said the governing system of the country should not be changed because someone has to sit in the political sidelines.
His remarks aimed at Former President and current Speaker of Parliament, Nasheed after he told President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih that he wanted to become Prime Minister of the Maldives.
Former President, Dr. Waheed also added that the governing system must be changed if the people of Maldives wanted to and for no other reason.
According to local media sources, Speaker Nasheed had told that he did not want to be on the sidelines of the state and that he wants to run the country by becoming the Prime Minister of Maldives. He had sent the message to the president yesterday evening but also stated that he wanted to discuss the matter with President Solih.
In the message he had sent, Speaker Nasheed had told that the president of the country would be decided from parliament in 2024 instead of holding the 2023 elections. Nasheed also said that the current parliament would decide who would become the president of the Maldives.
Speaker Nasheed’s more direct and open show of interest to become Prime Minister of the country comes while he has repeatedly stated that he had the interest to become one in the past. But Nasheed has previously said that it wasn’t the right time to change the governing system. Speaker Nasheed has also made repeated comments about bringing a parliamentary system to the country.
Speaking on the matter, President Solih had previously stated that this was a decision which needs to be made by the general public and that he did not want to focus on anything other than completing a successful 5 year term in office. He also added that people had voted to have a presidential system back in 2007 when the new constitution was being made and that people had said no to a parliamentary system.
