Maldives grateful to President Rajapaksa

Lakshmi de Silva

We are the first democratically elected Government in the Maldives after 30 years of autocratic rule. We have a Presidential system of Government which has a set term for the President and a set term for Parliament but we were experiencing a crisis situation recently when President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited our country, Maldivian Foreign Minister Dr Ahmed Shaheed told a press conference in Colombo yesterday.

He said there was no Cabinet when President Rajapaksa visited the country and the Government too had no majority in Parliament as there were several parties in the coalition Government and Government functions could not be performed in that situation.

However, with President Mahinda Rajapaksa discussing the issues with the President and other leaders of the country the crisis has ended and we are now trying to revive the Government and carry out its functions to work for our people. “As of yesterday two committees each comprising six members of the Government and the Opposition were appointed and they are expected to make practical suggestions that could allow the functions of the Government to be carried out so that matters like the next Budget and legislation needed for other legislative matters could be resolved,” Shaheed said.

“We are a young democracy and we certainly welcome suggestions and advice which will be useful for us. We keep an open mind. We are grateful to President Mahinda Rajapaksa for his effort that helped in resolving the problem we faced,” he said.

Maldivian Auditor General Uz Husnu Suood, Housing and Enviornment Minister Mohamed A Salam, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad, State for Finance and Treasury Minister Aslam Mohamed Shakir, Maldivian High Commission in Colombo Ali Hussain Didi were also associated at the press conference.