MDP will not play any game which leaves empty squares- Pres

President Mohamed Nasheed has said that the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) “will not play any game which leaves empty squares.”

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the campaign office of Maafannu Hulhangu MDP Candidate Mohamed Falah, the President said that the MDP government will not stay panic stricken since the party setting up goals and long-term plans to achieve success. He added that “even if MDP rules Maldives for the next 30 to 40 years, the opposition can never checkmate the MDP government.”

President Nasheed underscored the importance of winning the Local Council Elections to find a solution to the housing problem of the 18000 people in Male’ alone. He said that the government aims to provide housing for all internally displaced people.

“None of the Leaders who ruled over Maldives ever wanted to strengthen the role of the people by ruling through decentralization.  However, MDP wants that and it is the reason why it is included in the constitution. This is why MDP wants to win the local council elections. To provide the people with the rule of the people,” said the President.

Meanwhile, according to the 2006 Population and Housing Census, there were 46,194 households in the country. Of this, 14,107 were in the capital Malé and 32,087 were in the atolls. Fifty percent of all households in the country were owned by a male while 23 percent were female-owned and the remaining were co-owned. The average household size in the Maldives is 6.47, and this figure is slightly higher at 7.35 for Malé.

Until recently, development in Maldives has been focused towards Malé. Consequently, most of the industrial, commercial and social infrastructure evolved within and around Malé. This triggered migration from islands towards Malé for services, mainly education, health, and employment. Today, Malé, with a land area less than two square kilometres, accommodates more than a third of the country’s population, causing congestion and urban problems. Significant progress towards relieving the housing pressures in Malé can be made through effective decentralization and development of the provinces. 

Like Malé, certain urban centres in the atolls have also been facing land shortage and inappropriate land use issues. Land shortage on these islands has led to land subdivisions, housing congestions, substandard housing as well as multiple-family housing. Housing in the Maldives is very expensive with prices in Malé exceeding 12 times the average annual income. This is partly due to the land scarcity as well as the high cost of construction given the reliance on imported building materials. In Malé, the shortage of housing itself raises rents and prices.

President Nasheed’s government strongly emphasises that housing as a right of all citizens and this is reiterated in the Constitution (2008). Maldives has also ratified the International Convention on Social and Economic Rights (ICSER) which guarantees commitment to the fulfilment of housing rights for all.