Jeffrey Salim Waheed, the son of former President Dr. Mohamed Waheed, has made a significant announcement regarding his endorsement for the presidential runoff election. Salim, who currently holds the roles of a special advisor and council member within the Jumhoory Party (JP), revealed that his decision to back President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the candidate of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), in the upcoming runoff is a personal one.
Salim’s political journey has seen him previously aligned with the opposition Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) for a decade. However, he has now expressed a lack of confidence in the leadership of the opposition PPM-PNC (People’s National Congress) coalition, citing his past experiences as the basis for his skepticism.
According to Salim, the PPM and PNC are steering the nation toward a diplomatic conflict, and he firmly believes that if they were to assume power, the entire nation would bear the brunt of the resulting consequences. He emphasized his concerns by stating, “The price of this war will be our entire nation.”
In his assessment of the opposition PPM-PNC coalition’s presidential candidate, Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, Salim asserted that Muizzu lacks the capacity to effectively address security and financial concerns through comprehensive negotiations. Conversely, he praised President Solih as an individual with the capability to establish a transparent foreign policy, implying that this attribute would be beneficial for the nation.
