President must understand governance, not just hold a PhD: Yameen

Former President Abdulla Yameen has said academic qualifications in a particular field are not enough to lead a country, arguing that a president must understand governance, the law, state powers and the workings of Parliament.

Yameen made the remarks while addressing a meeting held at the People’s National Front (PNF) office on Thursday night.

Speaking about the qualifications required to hold the highest level of government, Yameen said a person needed broad knowledge and experience across areas connected to governance.

He said the Maldives needed a leader who was well-rounded if the country was to protect the rights of its people and secure the future they wanted.

“My advice to the Maldivian people is that if you want the Maldives you wish to see, if you want to brighten your future and protect your rights, it is not about having graduated in a particular field. But put a well-rounded person in the presidency,” Yameen said.

Yameen went on to explain what he meant by being “well-rounded”, saying expertise in a single academic discipline was insufficient.

“Being well-rounded does not mean simply obtaining a PhD in steel structures,” he said. “A person needs to understand the law, how the state is governed, how the powers of the state are structured and how the People’s Majlis functions. A person needs to be knowledgeable about these things. That is what it means to be well-rounded.”

The remarks appeared to be an indirect reference to President Mohamed Muizzu, who holds a doctorate in civil engineering from the United Kingdom and served as housing minister during Yameen’s administration.

Yameen said the requirement was not specific to the Maldives, arguing that anyone seeking to serve at the highest level of governance needed an understanding of the different areas involved in running a state.

“If you want to be at the highest level of governance, not only in the Maldives but anywhere in the world, you need to understand these areas,” he said.

Yameen was unable to contest the 2023 presidential election because of a criminal conviction in force at the time. Muizzu subsequently contested the election as the candidate of the then PPM-PNC coalition with Yameen’s political backing and won the presidency.

Relations between the two later deteriorated, with Yameen leaving the political movement he previously led and establishing the PNF.

Yameen also criticised the current Parliament during Thursday night’s meeting. The ruling PNC holds a supermajority in the People’s Majlis.

Referring to a hypothetical visit by a 10-member delegation from the British Parliament, Yameen questioned whether the Maldivian Parliament would be able to select an equivalent delegation to hold discussions with them.

“Even if a delegation of 10 members from the British Parliament came here now, the People’s Majlis would not be able to select 10 members to speak to them,” Yameen said.

He said Parliament would instead need to send a larger group because some MPs would require interpreters.

“For each person, with an interpreter, they would have to select 15 or 20 people. [Parliament Speaker] Abdul Raheem [Abdulla] would select two people from there as interpreters,” Yameen said.