Fayyaz calls for govt to relinquish control over project procurement

Opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Chairman, Fayyaz Ismail, has proposed that the government step back from managing the procurement process for projects and programmes carried out by various ministries.

Fayyaz made the remarks at the first session of the 'Reboot Maldives' programme held Monday. The event was hosted by former MP Mohamed Waheed.

Addressing the forum, Fayyaz began by referencing corruption allegations made against him during the previous administration by senior MDP officials, including Waheed.

"At a time of political disagreements, Waddey too used to call me corrupt. Now, the system is such that you can be labelled corrupt even if you are not involved in any wrongdoing," he said.

Fayyaz claimed that accusations of corruption, particularly concerning the awarding of development projects, frequently arise within different governments. He added that such allegations are sometimes made with political intent.

He called for systemic changes in the tendering and procurement process, listing several proposals:

Fayyaz, who served as Minister of Economic Development in the previous MDP-led government, said he spent a considerable amount of time addressing corruption allegations, which he said hindered efforts to implement the party’s manifesto.

“It was very difficult when we were focused on implementing our manifesto and responding to the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, while also addressing repeated corruption allegations,” he said.

He further argued that the President and the government should not be concerned with assigning project responsibilities and that such duties should be removed from government purview.

"My proposal is to fully separate the procurement system from government operations. There is no need to designate particular tasks to specific people through government ministries," he said.

Fayyaz added that significant time is spent by the President and ministers on oversight of infrastructure projects across islands, including ports and stadiums.

He proposed that such projects should be included in the national budget when submitted by local councils, with councils managing the allocated budgets independently. Ministries should not be responsible for implementing these projects, he said.

“Schools, mosques, ports, recreational spaces, and road paving in islands—these are not tasks the central government needs to be directly involved in,” he said.