The opposition that can't oppose: MDP burdened by its own elite

The MMPRC scandal orchestrated by former vice president Ahmed Adeeb involved the theft of US$ 90 million. When the MDP returned to power in 2018, it was supposed to be the party's moment of justice. Instead, the MDP finds itself burdened by the excess baggage of its own leaders, some of whom are among the nearly 300 beneficiaries of the stolen funds. 

When the cache of data and messages from Adeeb's phone was leaked – containing damning evidence of systemic graft, arson plots and manipulation of religious pilgrimages – some senior MDP figures tried to brush it off as a distraction. 

But a distraction from what, exactly? Over 80 percent of those named in the Adeeb Files belong to the current government. They include ministers, political appointees, lawmakers and other leadership figures from the ruling People's National Congress. Telling the public that their concerns are a distraction is precisely why MDP is unable to mobilise people. Citizens are not apathetic. They are frustrated by a party that systematically formulates excuses to avoid addressing uncomfortable truths.

Why this silence? Because several senior party members are directly implicated and former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's government failed to deliver justice as promised. Because telling the truth would mean admitting failure and implicating their own.

The MDP was founded as an antithesis to the autocratic Gayoom regime. It stood for values such as freedom, pluralism, transparency, and good governance. It positioned itself as the party of the people: anti-dictatorship, anti-corruption, anti-clientelism, anti-nepotism, and anti-favouritism.

On top of the failure to hold those implicated in the MMPRC graft accountable, former president Solih repeatedly ignored credible allegations of corruption. This continued even when his own political appointees resigned from state-owned enterprises (SOEs) or ministries in protest. Many cited their inability to tolerate the systemic misuse of public funds. One of them being the current deputy chairperson of MDP, Ibrahim Waheed, who resigned from the position of Fenaka's deputy managing director, citing alarming levels of corruption.

Corruption through SOEs continued to be the norm under the MDP's watch. Instead of becoming a beacon of transparency and reform, the party ended up replicating many of the same practices it once opposed. As a result, the MDP is now facing a deep credibility crisis. In the eyes of many, it is no longer distinguishable from the administrations of presidents Abdulla Yameen or Dr Mohamed Muizzu. The passionate street movements it once led have faded – not because of apathy, but because of growing disillusionment.

The MDP now finds itself walking a tightrope. On one hand, it has a duty to hold the current government accountable for its own long list of misdeeds. These include mismanagement, unsustainable debt, political firings, vanity projects, and ongoing corruption. The Muizzu administration is rapidly centralising power, expanding the reach of the executive, and weakening institutional checks. These are the very conditions under which the MDP once thrived as a resistance movement.

On the other hand, how can the party speak out with conviction when it has not addressed its own complicity? How can it hold the government accountable for corruption and embezzlement when Ibu Solih's own presidency was riddled with similar allegations? Many of those who benefitted from the MMPRC scandal or other illicit schemes still sit on the MDP's National Council or hold positions of influence.

This is why the MDP's rhetoric against the current government feels weak and selective. It cannot go all in. It cannot strike with full force. Doing so would expose the skeletons in its own closet.

Another example of MDP ignoring corruption is the party's silence over Malé Mayor Adam Azim's attempts to rig the council's procurement and bid evaluation process. I have written extensively on the issue. He submitted a proposal to replace the legally mandated civil servant committee for bid evaluations. He even proposed names for the replacement committee. PNC supported it. Azim then lied through his teeth, claiming it was just a review or opinion-giving committee, when the document bearing his own signature clearly states that the legally mandated bid committee will only review the decisions made by his handpicked bid evaluation committee.

Coincidentally, the first bid evaluated by the mayor's handpicked committee was that of developing a parking building next to Salman Mosque, to which a company mayor holds shares, submitted a proposal.

Not a peep out of MDP. Had Muizzu replaced this during his mayorship, I wonder how MDP would have reacted.

The MDP, once a party of the people, is now weighed down by the guilt of a few corrupt elites. The entire party, including thousands of honest grassroots members and supporters, is being forced to carry that burden.

We are seeing the consequences. The public is deeply dissatisfied with President Muizzu's governance. But they are not taking to the streets. Not because they don't care, but because they don't see MDP as a meaningful alternative.

This crisis of credibility must be addressed. The MDP cannot expect to regain the public's trust unless it starts by cleaning its own house. It must acknowledge and take responsibility for past failures, starting with the MMPRC scandal and figures like Fenaka Ahmed Saeed.

Yes, the current government may be using the Fenaka audit for political leverage, and yes, it may be exaggerating the findings. And certainly, the government choosing to release the report just a few days before the planned mass demonstration of October 3 is questionable and can be interpreted as an effort to reduce potential protest numbers.

But that does not excuse MDP from owning up to the fact that serious corruption occurred under its watch.

Admitting these mistakes and ceasing to defend those responsible does not mean handing Muizzu a political victory. It is not about scoring points. It is about restoring principles and, with it, the public trust. It is about regaining the moral ground. It is about MDP reaffirming to its supporters the ideals it was built on. Will the party spend the next five years defending the indefensible track records of the same individuals who ran SOEs into the ground?

The MDP's constant need to defend its tainted elite is precisely why ordinary citizens see no real difference between the opposition and the ruling party. The lack of public protest is not a lack of anger. It is a lack of hope.

MDP must now choose. Will it continue to defend the few? Or will it finally stand for the many? If the party still believes in the values it was founded on, then now is the time to prove it. 

Saif Fathih is a columnist at the Maldives Independent and a serving member of the Malé City Council for Galolhu North. With his educational background in communications, international studies and public policy, he previously worked as a journalist, editor and public policy advisor, with roles including senior policy director at the ministry of national planning and editor of Ocean Weekly Magazine. Saif began his career as a radio producer and presenter at Minivan Radio, writer for Minivan Daily, and translator for the British High Commission and the European Union Mission to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. He is also the host of Ithuru Vaahaka, the Maldives Independent podcast.