Post Election Rhetoric

Editorial

Post Election Rhetoric!

January 29, 2005

All of them who voted did it in anticipation for a better future for the country and for themselves. I would like to thank and congratulate everyone who voted in this election. The recent elections were based on the ‘reform-ticket’. All of a sudden everyone has now become reformists—the government is a reformist entity. Did we know about this before? I don’t think so! This is post-election rhetoric.

The current reform process was undoubtedly initiated by the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), with a view of a pluralist society; where democratic values of freedom of expression and association, equality and equity prevail. As soon as Dictator Gayyoom realized that the reform-ticket of the MDP was in a winning streak he changed tune. This is typical of Gayyoom. When the issue of global warming and sea level rise became a hot topic of concern for small island nation states, he jumped on the band wagon, didn’t he? What did he achieve? Where was ‘the man for all islands’ on the day of the tsunami? In hiding. Gayyoom said he has been a reformist ever since he became president in 1978. In fact, he reformed the system of government so that all his cronies could embezzle as much as they want so long he was in power. That was the type of reform he was talking about. Consequently, the country went bankrupt and someone had to bailout.

In the current political situation also he jumped on the bandwagon and he put up a manifesto on 9 June 2004 and now he calls himself as the father of democracy. In that case, Winter Shareef is the great-grandfather of democracy! This is the biggest joke in the history of Maldives, isn’t it? His chief political prostitute Dr. Ahmed Shaheed had rather said to the BBC, Gayyoom was the ‘clown of democracy’ in Maldives. Then Dr. Shaheed would not have been embarrassingly gob-smacked. These guys are trying to fabricate history. In Maldives, democracy has existed in the past and then reverted back to dictatorial rule. This is a common phenomenon in many countries like ours; look at Pakistan for instance.

"The first condition for any reform or change is for Gayyoom to step down, immediately."

The fact of the matter is Gayyoom is trying to force as many of the elected members who won on the reform-ticket into his bandwagon and endorse him as the father of democracy. This would be disaster for Maldives. The first condition for any reform or change is for Gayyoom to step down, immediately. Without Gayyoom stepping down we can’t have any reform. There are several reasons for this claim. First of all, over the last 27 years he has ruled Maldives under a dictatorship and he cannot accept any alternative point of view regarding development of the country. Secondly, if someone disagrees with him he would not be satisfied without torturing him, because he is so concerned that person will come after him again. Thirdly, he and his family have to be above the law and this clearly stated in the Blue Constitution, which was drafted in toilet-paper. He is so dumb that he can only see Male as Maldives and vice versa. There is no system of government and all rules regulations are in the heads of the inefficient bureaucrats in the government. That is ideal for corruption to breed. Since, he hasn’t been able to setup a health system to look after the sick, majority of Maldives have to go abroad even for minor complications. It is reported that on a daily basis non-communicable major illnesses are diagnosed. We do not have a system to deal will them. So, Gayyoom wants to leave them to rot. The education sector has never ever been evaluated and therefore we do not know whether our system of education is at its best, given that we are highly integrated to the international environment. So, basically he is complete loser.

The real post election rhetoric is that the people have no faith in him. However much he tries to come back into the limelight he has no stamina. He can’t even get a Booster like the one Raagondi Raaja asked from N. Miladhoo citizens. He has to realize that his days are over. It is for the betterment of the country and its people that he goes away. His battery is going flat. He has no new ideas, policies, or plans to revive the country. So, the important point is the true reformists who pledged to the people to elect them based on a reformist agenda should not let them fall into the trap what Gayyoom is digging. Please BEWARE!