THE Maldives Election Commission has sacked its chief ahead of presidential polls in September, an official said today, triggering opposition fears it would be able to hold a free and fair vote.

Fuwad Thowfeek, the president of the five-member Election Commission, was removed following a majority no-trust resolution, the official told AFP.

“He was voted out, but remains in office until the decision is ratified by parliament,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih is seeking re-election in the September 9 polls in the tiny Indian Ocean atoll nation of about 380,000 Sunni Muslims.

Five opposition parties expressed concern over the commission’s ability to conduct the polls after Thowfeek’s sacking.

A new party, The Democrats, a breakaway faction of Solih’s Maldivian Democratic Party, claimed the commissioners who voted him out are close associates of Solih.

“President Solih’s meddling and political manipulation of all the independent institutions is a major concern for all the opposition parties,” The Democrats said in a statement.

“The party is concerned that such actions will cause instability within the institution this close to the elections.”

It has also accused the commission of delaying its official party registration.

The Maldives adopted a multi-party system in 2008 after the 30-year rule of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

Solih’s main rival is former president Abdulla Yameen, Gayoom’s half-brother, who was jailed last December for 11 years on charges of corruption and money laundering.

Yameen has said he wants to contest the upcoming elections but it is not clear if the Election Commission will accept his candidacy by the August 3 deadline. – AFP, July 24, 2023.