The government has submitted a bill to the parliament seeking to extend the current term of councillors until local council elections are held and new councillors are elected.
The Special Bill on Ensuring the Operation of Administrative Divisions of Maldives under Decentralisation Policy 2020 was submitted by Parliamentarian Hassan Latheef as part of the efforts of the government in seeking a solution for the constitutional gap which may arise when the local council elections are postponed amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The current term of councillors expires on June 3, 2020.
Following the declaration of State of Public Health Emergency, after COVID-19 was detected in Maldives, the local council elections that were scheduled for April 4 was postponed indefinitely. The bill states all incumbent island and atoll councillors must hold their positions until new elections can be held and new officials are elected. The bill specifies the constitution does not state a directive on how to proceed during a situation such as now.
The bill comes at a time when the parliament is divided over making a decision on amending the constitution to extend the term of the councillors.