Elections Commission of Maldives has authorised two political parties to hold their first general meeting.
In this regard, the electoral body granted permission to the newly registered Maldives Third-way Democrats (MTD) and Maldives Labour and Social Democratic Party (MLSDP). The efforts to form MTD is led by Vice President of Maldives National Chamber of Commerce Ismail Asif, while prominent lawyer Abdulla Haseen is leading efforts to form MLSDP.
During the first general meeting held in the presence of the commission, parties' charter and manifesto, along with other tasks specified in the Political Parties Act have to be finalised. The meeting requires an attendance of 300-registered members of the party. Even though, Elections Commission gave permission to hold the general meetings, none of the mentioned parties have so far announced dates they will hold the meetings.
Meanwhile, the commission has also rejected the requests to form two other political parties. In a tweet, the electoral body announced the submission to form The Great Green Connection and Maldivians Action Party have been rejected as the names are believed to be unsuitable for political parties.
Up until 2017, 96,386 people have been registered as members of political parties. Out of those, 45,165 members are registered in Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), 29,659 members are registered in Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), 10,225 members are registered in Jumhooree Party and 10,536 members are registered in Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA).