PPM senate amends charter, restructures leadership roles
After the meeting, Haleem announced that the senate had decided to amend Article 61 of the PPM charter.
Senate of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) held two meetings Thursday at the office of its ally and ruling People's National Congress (PNC) in a bid to restructure their internal leadership and initiate charter changes.
During the first meeting, the senate made the following leadership appointments:
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Ibrahim Abdul Razzaq Haleem, CEO of IGMH, was appointed as PPM’s Secretary General.
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Foreign minister Dr Abdulla Khaleel has been appointed as vice president of the party.
Following this, a second meeting was convened under the leadership of vice president and defence minister Gassan Maumoon. This session focused on changes to the party’s charter.
After the meeting, Haleem announced that the senate had decided to amend Article 61 of the PPM charter. Although Haleem refrained from providing specific details, senate members later shared with the media that the amendments are intended to streamline the dissolution process of the party.
Key changes to Article 61 include:
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Simplified dissolution process: The party may now be dissolved with the approval of two-thirds of the senate, as opposed to the previous requirement of a three-fourths majority.
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Leadership's authority: Previously, dissolution could only occur for financial reasons. Now, the leadership can propose dissolution at their discretion.
A separate meeting is expected to take place soon to deliberate specifically on the potential dissolution of the party, though no date has been announced yet.
The PPM-PNC coalition operates with a joint council and unified leadership. Historically, both parties have shared a single leader.
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Former President Abdulla Yameen was the previous coalition leader.
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Following Yameen’s departure from the PPM, President Mohamed Muizzu was appointed to lead the coalition.
The PPM was established by former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and his supporters following their exit from the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP).
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PPM registration: October 27, 2011
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First party president: Maumoon Abdul Gayoom
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First presidential candidate: Abdulla Yameen, Maumoon’s brother
The PPM achieved success, winning both its first presidential and parliamentary elections.
The PNC was founded as a fallback option for Yameen, following internal disputes over Maumoon’s expulsion from the PPM.
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PNC registration: January 31, 2019
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First president: Abdul Raheem Abdulla
Once the PPM resolved its legal disputes, the PNC formed a coalition with the PPM.
The PPM-PNC coalition initially nominated Yameen for the 2023 presidential ticket. However, Yameen’s 11-year prison sentence rendered him ineligible to contest.
Faced with this setback, the PNC fielded Muizzu as their candidate. Despite Yameen’s calls to boycott the election, the PPM senate decided to support Muizzu.
