Fuvahmulah North MP Ali Shah speaks at parliament committee meeting. PHOTO/MIHAARU
Lawmaker of Fuvahmulah North constituency Ali Shah resigned from ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) late Monday in the footsteps of nine other lawmakers who have left the ruling party.
In a letter to PPM’s Secretary General and Nilandhoo MP Abdulla Khaleel, MP Shah stated that he wishes to resign from PPM in order to vote with independence and without bias in Parliament. The lawmaker, who represents the constituency with the highest support for PPM in Fuvahmulah, requested PPM to remove him from the party’s register as soon as possible and inform the Elections Commission.
MP Shah is one of ten PPM lawmakers that signed the joint opposition’s resolution seeking a motion of no confidence against Parliament Speaker Abdulla Maseeh. He is also the tenth lawmaker to leave the ruling party after the motion was submitted. Six members left earlier Monday while another three resigned from PPM last week,
Currently, only Isdhoo MP Ahmed Rasheed is the only lawmaker who signed the petition that still remains with PPM.
The ruling coalition PPM and Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) have lost the parliament’s majority with these resignation. They now hold total 39 seats in Parliament.
The lawmakers are hastily leaving the ruling party amidst a constitutional case filed by the government at the Supreme Court, seeking a ruling that lawmakers that leave their political party or shift to another party will lose their seat in Parliament as well. The first hearing of the case was held Monday.