As the Maldives prepares for tomorrow’s local council elections and the referendum on amending the Constitution to merge the holding of Presidential and Parliamentary elections, the Maldivian Democratic Party raises serious concern over the systematic campaign of intimidation, bribery, and abuse of state resources being waged by the Government of President Mohamed Muizzu and the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) to manipulate the outcome of both votes in their favour. These concerns include:
1. ARushedandUndemocraticConstitutionalChange
President Muizzu has used the PNC’s supermajority in Parliament to force through a constitutional amendment merging presidential and parliamentary elections — a fundamental restructuring of the Maldives’ democratic architecture designed to centralise the President’s hold on power. The amendment received just afewminutes of scrutiny in the parliamentary committee and only twohours of debate on the floor of the People’s Majlis, with no substantive discussion whatsoever. This is not democratic deliberation; it is the railroading of the Constitution.
The decision to hold the referendum on the same day as local council elections is a calculated tactic to bury a hugely consequential constitutional question beneath the logistics of a nationwide local vote. Citizens are being asked to approve a permanent change to the balance of power without any structured opportunity to understand what is being asked of them.
2. FailureofStateInstitutions
The Elections Commission of the Maldives has itself acknowledged that it has been unable to carry out the public awareness programmes mandated by law ahead of this referendum. The Commission’s constitutional duty — to “educate and create awareness among the general public on the electoral process and its purpose” — has gone unfulfilled on a matter of the highest constitutional consequence.
Public Service Media (PSM), the state broadcaster, has equally failed in its constitutional obligation to educate the public on the referendum and to ensure equal airtime and opportunity for both sides of the debate. The “No” campaign has been consistently denied fair and equal coverage. In a country where state media remains the primary source of information for a large portion of the population, this failure is not merely negligent — it amounts to the deliberate suppression of democratic debate at the direction of the ruling administration.
3. Vote-Buying,Bribery,andAbuseofStateResources
The Government’s campaign of electoral bribery in the lead-up to tomorrow’s vote has been brazen and unprecedented in its scale and visibility:
Freezingofpublichousingrentalpayments. Just five days before the election, the state-owned Housing Development Corporation waived two years of rental payments on Hiyaa public housing flats, granting each household an MVR 200,000 discount against outstanding rent, with no payments due until May 2028. The timing of this announcement — days before voters go to the polls — leaves no doubt as to its purpose.
Distributionofgiftsandcashforvotes. Reports from across the country detail the distribution of Umrah pilgrimage trips, washing machines, and direct cash payments to citizens in exchange for their votes.
Jobdistributionandthreatstopublicsectorworkers. The Government has weaponised public employment, distributing jobs in state-owned enterprises and government agencies to supporters while issuing direct threats to those already employed in the public sector and SOEs that they will lose their positions if they vote against the Government’s preferred outcome on the referendum. Ruling party candidates routinely offer several SOE jobs per constituency, often for roles that do not even exist.
Policesalaryincreases. Last week, the Government increased salaries for the Maldives Police Service — a move whose timing, on the eve of a sensitive election, speaks for itself.
These acts of electoral largesse are taking place at a time of acute economic hardship for ordinary Maldivians, making the exploitation of citizens’ vulnerability all the more unconscionable.
4. EconomicRecklessnessandLackofTransparency
The above acts of pre-election spending are taking place against a backdrop of severe fiscal fragility.
Late on Thursday evening — the eve of the election and the start of the Maldivian weekend — the Government announced that it had settled the USD 500 million sovereign sukuk maturing on 8 April, together with the final coupon payment of approximately USD 25 million. While this repayment averts the prospect of default, the Government has provided no meaningful transparency on critical questions, including details on how the payment was financed and what remains in the nation’s usable foreign currency reserves following the settlement, and whether it can withstand short-term external pressures — including the economic disruption arising from the ongoing conflict involving Iran and its effects on global energy and commodity markets.
TomorrowisadefiningmomentfortheMaldives’democracy.Wecallontheinternationalcommunity,diplomaticmissionsaccreditedtotheMaldives,internationalanddomesticelectionobservers,andcivilsocietyorganisationstomonitordevelopmentscloselythroughoutpollingdayandtodocumentandreportanyinstancesofintimidation,vote-buying,orinterferencewiththefreeexerciseoftheballot.Aboveall,weurgethepeopleoftheMaldivestoturnoutinthehighestpossiblenumbers.Inthefaceofagovernmentthathassoughttobuy,threaten,andmanipulateitswaytotheoutcomeitdesires,themostpowerfulresponseistheoneitcannotcontrol:thevoiceofadeterminedelectorate.TheMDPcallsonthepeopletoholdthisGovernmentaccountable,andtocomeoutandvote.