Secretary General of PPM appointed from President Yameen’s faction, Dr Abdullah Khaleel speaks during PPM meeting. PHOTO:/MIHAARU
Ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) will elect 600 candidates to run for the Local Council Elections to be held April 8, announced PPM’s Secretary General and Nilandhoo MP Abdulla Khaleel on Wednesday.
The Civil Court had ordered to postpone the local elections, originally scheduled to be held January 14, after PPM had filed a case seeking a delay as it had not been able to complete preparations in time. Secretary General Khaleel explained that their preparations had been at a halt due to missing information in PPM’s registry of members.
He stated that the registry has since been completed with information obtained from the Elections Commission (EC) and PPM’s branches.
SG Khaleel said that the candidacy forms of those that meet the conditions to run for the Local Council Elections will be submitted to the EC next week.
Under the amendments brought to the Act on local elections, three councillors will be elected for populations less than 3,000 and five for populations numbering over 3,000.
“We’re working to hold the pending primaries of councils within this week.”
PPM is working with the government coalition partners Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA) and Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) to prepare for the Local Council Elections. SG Khaleel expressed confidence in the government gaining the “super majority” of the councils, stating that President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s ongoing unbiased development projects across the Maldives is earning his administration great support from the public.