President sought cooperation to fulfil constitutional duty even before Thursday’s parliamentary session: Special Advisor

Special Advisor to the President, Dr Hassan Saeed, has stated that President Mohamed Waheed tried to ensure that he could fulfil his constitutional duty of opening the People’s Majlis even before Thursday’s scheduled session.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday following the cancellation of the parliament session, Dr Saeed said the President personally attended All-Party Talks on Wednesday to encourage them to find solutions through dialogue.

The President, he added, also met several MPs on Wednesday evening to ensure that he could peacefully fulfil his constitutional duty to officially open the People’s Majlis for the year.

Dr Saeed said since his arrival to the People’s Majlis on Thursday morning, the President again tried to find a peaceful arrangement through dialogue and consultation with opposition MDP MPs.

In his meeting with MPs, the President had also supported a proposal for the People’s Majlis to decide a date for an early election, Dr Saeed said.

He said: “Instead, we saw from a minority of MPs actions that are unacceptable in a civilised society and that posed huge challenges for an infant democracy like ours. We are sad that instead of showing good democratic example to the world, to all Maldivians and its children, those MPs showed a most uncivilised example.”

At the press conference, Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, also praised President Waheed for prioritising dialogue as the only way to find solutions to all political issues.

He said President Waheed had always shown that he opted for an inclusive political process, and condemned the behaviour of MDP MPs for blocking the President from delivering presidential address.

Dr Jameel characterised the incidents at the People’s Majlis as a dark chapter in the country’s constitutional and political history.

Attorney General Azima Shakoor, who participated in the press conference along with Dr Jameel and Dr Saeed, noted that until the People’s Majlis officially opens for the year, the President’s constitutional duty could not be fulfilled. She said the President would remain steadfast in fulfilling his duties within the constitutional limits. She added the restraints he showed today were a vivid example of his respect for the Constitution.