Candidates who lose political party primaries barred from contesting in elections
The parliament has revised the political parties law to bar members who lose primaries from contesting elections on the ticket of a different party or as independent candidates.
25 Nov 2016, 9:00 AM
The People’s Majlis has revised the political parties law to bar members who lose primaries from contesting elections on the ticket of a different party or as independent candidates.
Amendments proposed by ruling party MP Saud Hussain was passed 41-29 at Wednesday’s sitting of parliament with opposition MPs denouncing the move as an unjustifiable restriction of the constitutional right to seek public office.
The change was proposed as a deeply divided ruling party scrambles to fight an opposition coalition in January’s local council elections. The Progressive Party of the Maldives was plunged into civil war when President Abdulla Yameen and his half brother, former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, began fighting for the control of the ruling party.
The amendment by Saud states that a “political party member who contests in a political party primary, in order to obtain the said party’s ticket for an election sanctioned by the Maldivian constitution and laws, must not stand in that election in any other capacity.”
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