The main ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has denied claims made by Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed that it would provide its full cooperation to the referendum on a change in the system of governance if The Democrats did not support a particular party in the second round of the presidential election.
Speaking at Parliament, Speaker Nasheed said that MDP had told members of the Democrats that they would provide their full cooperation to holding the referendum if the Democrats refrain from supporting either candidate during the second round of the election. He said MDP had obtained a letter from the Democrats agreeing to the demand, however, MDP failed to send a response back. He also said that MDP cannot be held true to its words.
The Democrats came third in the first round of the presidential election with 7% of votes. It had been heavily courted by both MDP and the opposition People's National Congress (PNC) for a potential coalition deal for the second round. The party pushed for a referendum to change the system of governance to a parliamentary system and sought support from both parties during negotiations. The Parliament also passed a resolution calling for the referendum to be held before October 30.
Interim Chairperson of the Democrats Hassan Latheef said earlier that discussions took place with both MDP and PNC. He, however, clarified that no agreement has been reached in the talks with both parties. As such, The Democrats decided not to support any candidate during the second round.