Falah claims PNC helped Meekail secure votes in MDP chairperson election
Falah alleged that the MDP's parliamentary members had failed to support Meekail's campaign despite promising to secure votes on his behalf.
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Parliamentary Group Leader of the ruling People's National Congress (PNC), Ibrahim Falah, on Wednesday claimed that members of the party assisted opposition MP Meekail Ahmed Naseem in securing votes during the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) chairperson election.
Falah made the remarks during debate on a government-sponsored bill to amend the Import-Export Act, which proposes reducing the specific import duty on cigarettes to MVR 4 per stick. The bill was later accepted by Parliament and referred to the Committee of the Whole House.
During his speech, Falah alleged that the MDP's parliamentary members had failed to support Meekail's campaign despite promising to secure votes on his behalf.
"These are treacherous people. Just look at what these 11 [MDP] members did to that poor guy, Meekail Naseem," Falah said. "They joined his campaign saying they would bring votes from their constituencies, but they failed to do so."
He further claimed that Meekail later sought assistance from PNC parliamentarians.
"In the end, he asked us to help secure votes, and we did what we could for him," Falah said.
During the speech, Meekail raised a point of order, arguing that Parliament should instead be debating what he described as President Dr Mohamed Muizzu's reversal of policy. Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla ruled that the intervention did not constitute a valid point of order and did not allow Meekail to continue.
Falah went on to criticise the MDP's "Bodu Badhalu" (Great Change) initiative, claiming it would not succeed. He also joked that the party's MPs were not involved in the initiative and suggested establishing a "Bodu Badhalu" office within Parliament headed by Hanimaadhoo MP Abdul Ghafoor Moosa. His remarks prompted protests from opposition members.
Earlier in his speech, Falah criticised former President and current MDP Chairperson Mohamed Nasheed, accusing him of taking inconsistent political positions.
He said that while serving as Speaker of Parliament during the administration of former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Nasheed had criticised the management of state-owned enterprises, including Fenaka Corporation and RDC, and had described the state budget as a "debt receipt".
Falah also referred to the involvement of former Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer in Nasheed's political team.
Concluding his remarks, Falah said Meekail should remember the positions he had previously taken during the Solih administration.
