Nasheed hails Ilyas as only candidate who understands economy

The only candidate who knows the country’s finances and economy, especially debt, is The Democrats’ presidential candidate, Ilyas Labeeb, the party’s founder Mohamed Nasheed said on Sunday evening.

The Democrats' vision for the north and south of the country was unveiled at a ceremony held at the Dhon Manik Sky View restaurant in the carnival area of Male.

Speaking at the ceremony, Nasheed said President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's answer to a question on debt in the presidential debate on Saturday contained deceit. He said that Ilyas is the only candidate who knows about debt.

President Solih said in the presidential debate on Saturday that Maldives will have to pay USD 600 million directly in 2026.

According to the finance ministry, Maldives has to pay that amount directly that year. However, in addition to the USD 400 million currently owed annually, Maldives's debt obligations in 2026 will reach USD 1 billion with the USD 600 million payable in one lump sum.

"To say that the debt of the Maldivian state is USD 600 million is definitely a false statement. It is a huge deception that can deceive the people of Maldives whether in an election year or another year," Nasheed said on Sunday evening.

Nasheed accused the government of “misrepresenting” the debt issues, which made it impossible to assess Maldives's financial situation.

“It is unfortunate that the presidential candidates except Ilyas Labeeb have not identified the facts regarding the state debt,” Nasheed said, referring to Saturday's presidential debate.

"I must tell all the people of the Maldives today that only candidate number six, Hon. Ilyas Labeeb, has told the people how a presidential candidate will behave in relation to the country's finances and the economy of the Maldives, and I urge you to remember this while you vote in the upcoming presidential elections."

Nasheed said the MDP had promised to restructure Maldives' debt during the 2018 election campaign. He also noted that the MDP had promised to explore avenues such as debt for environment swaps. 

“Not only did he not restructure the debt, but while he was taking more debt, the President did not discuss the debt issue with the Parliament except to give the information to the Parliament after 90 days,” Nasheed said.

Nasheed said the parliamentary committees also advised the government to restructure the debt and stabilize the debt situation. However, if it does not do so, Maldives will face a major financial challenge in 2026, Nasheed said.

"By the time 2026 approaches, the amount to be paid back that year will be more than USD 1 billion. It is by no means the revenue that the country will earn that year," Nasheed said.

"Even though we attempt to save money from today till that day, it is much clearer from today's economic realities, financial realities, that even if we have been saving the amount till 2026, the money will not be kept safe."

Despite opposition warnings that Maldives could become indebted, the government says it will stabilize the debt situation by 2026 by increasing revenue and managing debt. The government also assures that Maldives will not go bankrupt.