Dozen members of the Maldives Reform Movement (MRM) who were serving positions within the Ibrahim Mohamed Solih administration have left the party and expressed their support for his re-election. The eight members who resigned include Mohamed Faisal, the deputy ambassador to the UAE; Thazmeel Abdul Samad, the managing director of Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC); Mohamed Raid, the managing director of Maldives Integrated Tourism Development Corporation (MITDC); Shazail Shiyam, the managing director of Maldive Gas; Abdul Hameed Ahmed, a senior executive director; Ibrahim Farhad, a senior policy director; Ismail Naail Nasheed, the communications director at the Heritage Ministry; and Hassan Hayyan Ahmed, an MRM exco member. Although these members have left MRM, the party still has 23 members in various positions within the administration, including three cabinet ministers.
MRM is currently negotiating whether it will partner with the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) or the Jumhoory Party (JP) for the upcoming presidential election. While MRM and JP are both part of the current coalition government, JP has decided not to continue its partnership with MDP for the election in September. MRM, however, has not yet made a decision.
In a joint statement, the eight members who left MRM accused some of the party’s leaders of campaigning against the government and stated that “members of the party’s exco and political appointees on this party’s slots have taken an open stand against President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.” While some of the party’s founding members and members serving top positions in the current administration want to maintain the coalition, MRM’s president Faris Maumoon and some council members reportedly wish to leave the coalition.
