The Royal Gayoom Family has long kept Maldives in its leash of autocratic governance. Members of Gayoom family have held “Democracy in Maldives” at ransom for past few decades now, changing democratic policies and rules to suit their own personal requirements and needs. With most of opposition leaders now in jail (on pretext of spreading terrorism) or self-exile (to prevent submission to evil Gayoom regime under brutal torture), Gayoom family moves unopposed and unquestioned. The curb on “Freedom of Expression” of media in Maldives has helped Gayoom family to cover its dictatorship-type governance in Maldives with garbs of “Pseudo-Democracy” for the international organizations. National policies involving the weal or woe of Maldivians, are very repeatedly taken for granted by the royal Gayoom family.
After recent doubling of price of basic necessities like food, electricity, etc. and imposition of new unjustified taxes on people and tourism sector, Maldives is now suffering under the power struggle between Ex-President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (whose dictatorship over Maldives lasted for more than 30 years) and his half brother Yameen Abdul Gayoom (The present President of Maldives). The power struggle over Maldives has now resulted in family feuds in royal Gayoom family and a personal all-out war between the two brothers. The feud is so intensified now that the ruling party, Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), has split into two. One (so-called) Faction, is led by Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the party’s founder, leader, and muse. The second is led by Yameen Abdul Gayoom, the younger brother anointed and hoisted onto the throne by the elder brother. Yameen Abdul Gayoom, the current President of Maldives, is now publicly declaring his elder sibling Maumoon Abdul Gayoom as obsolete and an obstacle to the ruling regime.
Debris from the all-out war between the Gayoom brothers have been flying around for months but are now out in open for the display and amusement of people of Maldives. Gayoom family has now shed its superficial garbs of pseudo-dignity and have started to wash their dirty laundry of “Gayoom Family Feud” in full public display. Gayooms’ family favourite toys—the Maldives‘ Judiciary, Maldives’ Majlis and Maldives’ Media, flooded by Gayoom family loyalist, are being extensively used by the two brothers to throw dirt on each other by using words like “Mushthashar”. Maldives’ Judiciary is now one of the most corrupt judiciaries in the world, Maldives Majlis is now flooded with in-efficient and under-qualified loyalist of Gayoom family and Maldives’ Media is in chains of oppression by implementation of controversial policies like “Defamation Law”.
The royal family feud comes at the cost of neglect of Maldivians, who are struggling to get their plight and cries heard by ears of royal family. The political “Face-Off” between the Gayoom brothers taking Maldives’ economy in a trap of downward spiral. Maldives national debt is now standing at a shocking 80 percent of GDP. Maldives’ national expenses continue to spiral out of control, nation’s bread-earning tourism industry has gone down, and investors just aren’t interested anymore. Gayoom brothers are in absolute control of the judiciary and so-called independent institutions of Maldives. The Majlis has stopped functioning. The opposition has been rendered wholly ineffective and virtually voiceless, the multi-party system is under sustained attack and human rights are now curbed by declaring them as “Enemy of Islam” and attack on Maldives’ Sovereignty.
Gayoom family is taking Maldives on a ride to downfall, taking advantage of the basic human mentality that, “When a certain line of conduct, however questionable may be its policy—however momentous may be its good or evil results, has been followed by its leaders, it usually happens that the great masses of mankind continue the same course of action, without ever putting to themselves the question—Is it right? Custom has the enviable power, of coming to conclusions upon most debatable points, without a moment’s consideration—of turning propositions of a very doubtful character into axioms—and of setting aside almost self-evident truths as unworthy of consideration.” With Majlis, Judiciary and Media of Maldives, now puppets in hands of evil Gayoom regime, people of Maldives are now praying to merciful Allah for a miracle to save them from evil policies of the government.
