:: Dhivehi Observer :: Peoples Press ::

MR. PRESIDENT! PLEASE DON'T SEND MORE CAMPAIGNERS HERE!

Maldive students in Malaysia - Thursday 14th October 2004

First the president send Aneesa. It did not work. And then this time he sent Ibrahim Zakariyya Moosa, religious adviser in our country to gain our support for Gayyoom's brutal dictatorship. Zakariyya is fluent in his words and convincing in his speeches. That might be one reason why our far thinking president chose him this time. It is saddening to see people like Zakariyya being bribed by Gayyoom in the expense of the honest citizens of Maldives for their worldly comforts. Looks like Gayyoom can't bear to hear our criticism against him. People who hold high and responsible jobs like him are subjected to mass criticism daily. Great leaders are leaders who take criticism positively and those who take action wisely. After all we all know very well now, Gayyoom is a merciless dictator and dictators cannot stand up in front of criticism.

Our humble request to Gayyoom is please don't continue sending your representatives here to articulate gratitude to you and promote your dictatorship. We are fed up with you and we don't want to waste time attending the meetings held by people like Zakariyya and Aneesa. Let us remind you that you can never persuade us to support you and be reminded that it is our own independent right. What we want to call you is an idiotic dictator. Respect is something we gain. It will never achieved by your methodology. What Zakariyya told in the meeting only added fuel to the fire of anger burning in our minds towards you. He talked bad about the people we love like Qasim Ibrahim and he talked good about you, the one we hate most in the whole Republic of Maldives. Hope we will not see another representative from you to boast about you. Only about 10 students attended Zakariyya's meeting showing the "great" support you have among the Maldive graduates in Malaysia. We attended this meeting thinking he might say something constructive other than praising Gayyoom as if he is God. I wonder if he is praying Gayyoom or Allah! If Zakariyya has a brain that works, he should have realized something from the questions we asked him during the meeting. He should have realized that what he was doing is of no avail.

Gayyoom! Don't send your faithful, but bribed people to campaign for your dictatorship. As students we know our duties and responsibilities for the development and success of our country. We know it is us who will have to lead this country into expansion and progress. We are aware of what we do and we realize what we are doing. We know what is right and what is wrong. So don't send your thugs here. We warn you! Things will go much far than you ever dreamed. The world is very different from what you think now. What you and your friends in cabinet studied in Egypt a long time back is now out of date and now you need to hit the refresh button. You can't play with our mind the way you play with the rural people of the so-called atholhu thakuge (Atolls). We are very aware of your psychological dramas and now we have leaned them by heart like our ABC's. So keep your associates near to you and don't send them here to give us lectures. We have had enough lectures from you since the time of our birth. So we call you very ihlaastheri kamaai eku (sincerely) to let us live in peace and freedom.

Being responsible students, we will not keep silent with what you are doing now. We are still aware you have not changed a little and the secret behind the drama you play now is nothing other than international pressure. Here we like to remind you that we will not let you go on your way. We will expose you more and more. From time to time. Step by step! We will campaign against you nationally and internationally until you have no other choice. We will bring you down. We are determined and we are positive. We will be writing to New Papers of Asia and Europe in which we will tell the world you are a dictator. We will send letters to Amnesty international, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), United Nations, European Union and other related organisations that we think will help us in our mission. We will talk diplomats and foreign ministers of countries nearby us and inform them about our cry as students. We will do anything we can! Because you don’t deserve to be the president of the republic of Maldives! Because you are ridiculous! You are mad! You are a dictator! And we love our country!!!