A group of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) members loyal to former President Mohamed Nasheed submitted a petition against party chairperson Abdul Ghafoor on Wednesday afternoon.
The petition was delivered to the MDP headquarters in Male’.The petitioners claim that Abdul Ghafoor is taking orders from “someone else” and is not making his own decisions. They accuse him of dismissing top party officials against the rules of the party’s constitution.
They say his actions have created confusion among ordinary party members and damaged public trust in the MDP.According to MDP rules, dismissing the chairperson needs a majority vote from the National Council. The council has 123 members and needs at least 31 members present to hold a meeting.
This internal crisis comes just days after the MDP won the local council elections and referendum last weekend. On Monday night, former President Mohamed Nasheed and former chairperson Fayyaz Ismail boycotted the party’s victory rally in Male’ because they were not allowed to speak. The situation worsened on Tuesday when the party suddenly dismissed deputy chairperson Ibrahim Waheed (Iburey) and legal director Ahmed Mauroof (Matey) without any explanation.
