Elections Commission of the Maldives (ECM) has stated the local council elections can be held in April if the required legislative changes are implemented before the end of this month.
ECM had been planning to conduct the delayed local council elections in the first week of March. However, following the extension of the State of Public Health Emergency until February 3, the elections can no longer be held in March within the timeframe described in the Special Act on Local Council Elections.
Speaking to PSM News, President of ECM Ahmed Shareef said the commission is currently working on drafting the legislative changes required to conduct the elections. Shareef said the changes would have to be passed by the Parliament and ratified by the President before the end of this month to be able to hold the elections by April 3, before the start of Ramadan.
Some of the legislative changes proposed by ECM include removing the requirement in the Special Act on Local Council Elections to hold the elections within an year, and to allow ECM to allocate a date for the elections. The commission said it is also drafting an addition to Clause 2 of the Act to allow the shortening of certain durations specified for electoral procedures under special circumstances. ECM said it also wants to include a clause which grants the commission the authority to conduct the elections in adherence to the guidelines of Health Protection Agency (HPA), even if the State of Public Health Emergency is not lifted.
The parliament is currently in recess, and will reopen for the year on February 4. The changes proposed by ECM can only be passed if the parliament conducts a sitting outside its regular session.
Meanwhile, Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has expressed the importance of facilitating means to conduct the local council elections as soon as possible. In a tweet, the Speaker said the elections must be held in the earliest possible timeframe, without delay. He expressed belief any legislative changes required to conduct the elections must be brought immediately in order to facilitate the elections.