Former President Abdulla Yameen addressed his supporters during his first public appearance since being placed under house arrest.
Yameen’s visit to the PPM headquarters on a Sunday evening marked a significant moment as he met with his supporters in an office meeting hall. Although the specifics of Yameen’s statement were not made public, Jameel, his lead attorney and the former vice president of his government, shared some of his remarks via a Facebook post.
According to Jameel, Yameen emphasized the PPM’s status as the strongest political party in the country. He encouraged the party to educate the younger generation about its policies.
Yameen’s words echoed, “No member of the party should fill out forms for another party or the PNC. They are two parties of the same ideology,” as reported by Jameel. Yameen also underscored the importance of striving for success in the upcoming parliamentary elections.
In the presidential election held in September, Dr. Mohamed Muizzu was elected as president under the PNC banner. Muizzu expressed his commitment to strengthening the PNC and assumed the role of party president, working on establishing internal party mechanisms. Subsequently, Abdul Raheem Abdulla became the party’s chairperson.
It’s worth noting that, as of February 21, the PNC had 3,159 members, just meeting the legal requirement of a minimum of 3,000 members for a political party.
Former President Yameen had been sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined USD 5 million in December by the Criminal Court for charges related to accepting bribes and money laundering in connection with the V. Aarah lease by MMPRC. He had been incarcerated until the previous month when he was placed under house arrest following the victory of the PPM-PNC coalition in the presidential election.
