President Waheed meets coalition members ahead of CNI report release

According to a press release on the President’s Office website, the meeting saw discussions on agreeing a way forward upon the release of the report compiled by the CNI. The report, which was scheduled to be released today, has been delayed for at least an additional 24 hours.

The President’s Office stated that a consensus was reached at the meeting whereby all the coalition partners pledged to back Dr Waheed’s views concerning the investigation and its findings.  No further details were provided on the discussions in the statement.

President’s Office Spokesperson Abbas Adil Riza was not responding to calls at the time of press.

Local media quoted government-aligned Adhaalath Party President Sheikh Imran Abdulla, as saying that the coalition parties had assured President Waheed that they would not allow any persons to create unrest in the Maldives upon the report’s release. He also said that all the coalition parties were ready to help security forces in their work to maintain peace and order.

Chief Spokesperson of Jumhooree Party, Moosa Rameez, speaking to Minivan News today said: “Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik is the president of a coalition government and all the coalition parties have decided to work together with whatever decision he makes regarding the CNI results.”

Rameez said that the coalition parties also agreed not to hold any protests or demonstrations following the CNI report, no matter its final outcome.  He added that although government-aligned parties in the coalition had pledged to follow the president’s views on the matter, they had not yet received any additional information about it.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has alleged that President Waheed’s government came to power on February 7 in a “coup e’etat”.  These claims form the central focus of the CNI’s investigation into the exact details surrounding the controversial transfer of power.