Construction Minister Dr Abdulla Muththalib has said that a road planned under the Addu City Gan Airport development project may be removed from the scope of the current works due to ongoing delays in vacating a building along the route.
The ministry has asked for the road to be excluded from the project to avoid delays and potential compensation payments to the contractor.
The dispute centres on a building that has yet to be vacated after two years of resistance from its current user, believed to be Equator Village in Gan.
“The building and the land it sits on belong to the Addu International Airport Company. However, the land hasn’t been handed over to the contractor because the user refuses to vacate it,” Minister Muththalib said.
Minister Muththalib speaks in parliament -- Photo: Parliament
The Minister said he understood the frustrations of Addu residents over the road being dropped from the project. He said that unless the site is cleared by April 17, the road will no longer be part of the airport development.
Even so, he promised the road would still be built, but as a separate project once the land becomes available.
“With cooperation from all sides, we hope the land can be handed over to the contractor soon,” he added.
Addu City Council issued a statement criticizing the decision, calling it unilateral and contrary to the principles of decentralization.
“Excluding a major part of the project without any consultation with the council or Addu International Airport Company goes against the principles of an independent, democratic society and the rights of the people of the south,” it said.
The airport development is being carried out by India’s Renaatus Company.