Rifts emerge in PPM-Democrats infant alliance over pres candidacy

Main opposition PPM-PNC said on Friday that they will not give up on former president Abdulla Yameen's candidacy as their presidential candidate despite negotiations with former MDP president Mohamed Nasheed's breakaway party The Democrats to work together against government.

The Democrats and PPM recently announced an alliance and are engaged in formal negotiations on ways to work together against the government. 

Ocean Weekly, a weekly newspaper run by Nasheed's Ocean Publishing, published an article on Friday indicating that both parties will field a joint candidate who is neither Nasheed nor Yameen.

Ocean Weekly's article has sparked outrage among senior members of the opposition PPM and PNC.

PPM Vice President and Naifaru MP Ahmed Shiyam, who is leading the party's talks with The Democrats, tweeted that Ocean Weekly was talking about "dreams". He also assured supporters that Yameen would be nominated as PPM's presidential candidate.

“PPM’s candidate President Yameen is the first presidential candidate presented for 2023. His candidacy form will be submitted first for the election on July 23,” he said.

Faresmathoda MP and PPM’s senate member Hussain Mohamed Latheef also expressed his displeasure saying that no other party had any grounds to talk about PPM’s presidential ticket.

In addition, some members of the party's senate and supporters have expressed their dissatisfaction on Twitter, saying there is no way the party will not contest the presidential election. The party's presidential candidate will not be sacrificed in political talks with any party, they said. 

Despite the opposition leadership's claims, Yameen is serving an 11-year prison sentence and there are questions about his ability to contest the election. The opposition has always assured that he will contest and win the election, as is the usual stand in politics.