President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom claims responsibility for propelling former president Mohamed Nasheed and founder of Jumhooree Party Qasim Ibrahim, out of the running for the presidential elections, slated to be held on the 23rd.
The bold statement was delivered by the President whilst addressing a special meeting held by the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives at the Alimas Carnival on Friday.
Calling the candidacy "great favour" from himself to the opposition presidential candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih (Ibu) and running mate Faisal Naseem, President Yameen stated that the only reason they received the presidential ticket was that Nasheed and Qasim were not allowed to contest the elections.
Nasheed and Qasim were found ineligible to contest in the upcoming presidential elections as they currently face jail sentences based on terrorism charges and bribery charges respectively.
While President Yameen has only just insinuated his direct involvement in assuring the ineligibility of both potential candidates, both Nasheed and Qasim had reiterated the sentiment continuously since the time of their initial incarceration, calling their sentences and due process unfair and unjust.
Nasheed was sentenced to 13-years of imprisonment on terrorism charges in March 2015, in a trial that was widely criticised for lack of due process. Qasim was sentenced to 3-years in prison over bribing parliamentarians.
Both Nasheed and Qasim sought political asylum abroad after the Maldivian government allowed them to travel out of the country for medical treatment. Nasheed is currently residing in the UK, while Qasim is in Germany.
According to President Yameen, Ibu and Faisal's lack of referral to the events that led to their candidacy serves effectively as a silent 'thank you' to himself.
"Why does Ibu thank me? Because I did not allow Nasheed to contest. I did not allow Qasim to contest. These two candidates [Ibu and Faisal] received the ticket because of these circumstances. As such, they are thankful to me," he said.
The President referred to Ibu's candidacy as one gotten via votes counted from 'buckets' and a 'cement mixing machine' while Faisal's candidacy was earned at the cost of Qasim's disapproval. He further claimed that given the opportunity, Qasim would wish to run for President as well as Vice President of the country.
"It is true, isn't it? If I trembled nervously and let these criminals loose, these people will not be able to differentiate between fair and dark tone. They will not notice a piece of paper, let alone a ticket," said President Yameen.
The President declared that at this moment, Ibu and Faisal harboured a lot of love for him, stating that regardless, the number "two" would always fall behind "one." While the incumbent president received "1" as his candidate number, the opposition had received "2".
Of the President Yameen's 45-minute speech, the topic centralized heavily on that of former president Nasheed and drawing comparisons between Nasheed's 3-year term and the President's own 5-year term.
Declaring that "concrete progress is cooler[slang]", he stated that Maldivians were more accepting of such developments more than that of Nasheed's philosophy.
That said, Nasheed has continually expressed his own dislike of President Yameen's 'concrete' fuelled progress, which he criticizes for not benefiting the ordinary Maldivians.