Read the Auditor General's Reports
I think it is the duty of every Maldivian to read or be read the Auditor General's reports on the President's Office and State Trading Organisation.
Here is the final word and proof of what we have heard so far as rumors on the grapevine regarding the misappropriation of government funds by the incumbent president Gayoom. It sickens me how Gayoom and his gangs have robbed this country just in the past few years alone. Now multiply that for the past 3 decades!
Read the reports and think about what is said there. The vast sums of money, public's money, spent on special individuals and projects that have had no real benefit to the nation and the people are all in that report.
People, wake up. If you are voting for Gayoom, please read these reports. I know some of my friends are voting for him because they fear that anyone else might be worse than Gayoom in their 5 years in office. Today, with these reports, Maldives has proven that it is truly on the road and on track towards a real democracy. Think about it! Even if your average Ahmed Carpenter became the president these independent institutions, like the Auditor General's Office will monitor his actions and will report to the parliament and the public.
Shaafiee | October 7, 2008 3:22 PM | Reply
The point you make at the expense of Ahmed Carpenter (God save his soul) is sound. However, the Auditor General, anti-corruptions bodies, public service departments are all nothing new. Despite having been in existence for quite some time, they've failed to enforce Maumoon to conform. What assures us that the other blokes will?
Shaafiee,
They failed quite simply because they were not independent. They were established under the president's office itself. So how would that work to enforce anything?
But today these bodies are commissioned under the law by the parliament and report to the people. I think you know this?
Shaafiee | October 7, 2008 4:13 PM | Reply
I'm sure that YOU should know how different our parliamentary elections are from those of a country like the US. Maldives has a parliament elected without party affiliations, which means it is very much more subject to the influence of capitalists and propagandists. In the US, parliamentary seats are apportioned relative to party popularity.
In a country whose parliament is afflicted with an influence, would not that influence hold sway on the 'independent' bodies under parliamentary purview?
Shaafiee,
The point here is that these bodies are not under president's office as they have been in the past.
Now, whether the situation in the future is that the person holding the Auditor General's position is biased or not it is YET to be seen. Give the change a chance.
For some reason, I feel you are afraid of a future without Gayoom. And it worries me. If that is the case are you expecting Gayoom to transform into a slightly "toned down" version of the old Gayoom? Sort of like a debugged, loosely coupled to corruption Gayoom? Gayoom 2.0?
What has failed to "enforce" Gayoom is authoritarian dictatorship that he was running all this time. Why is that not clear to you?
a | October 7, 2008 5:14 PM | Reply
Shaafiee, I can't even imagine to comment on your expert knowledge on the US. So I leave that.
What we are SURE is that Gayoom has malappropriated and abused State money. Our money. So we CANNOT in our conscientious thinking vote this man.
We cannot be sure others will not do the same. But that is an uncertainty. So in my conscientious thinking, I believe we are obliged at least not to vote Gayoom.
Abdulla Yasir | October 7, 2008 5:54 PM | Reply
You are right. It sickens me too how Gayoom and his gangs have robbed this country. This is a calculated conduct to make a profit for him and excessive and insolent use of power. This conduct amounts to misfeasance in a public office and he should be sued in tort immediately.
If public officers will infringe men's money, they ought to pay greater damages than other men. Maumoon in this case owes the country and its people compensation and exemplary damages.
Shaafiee | October 7, 2008 6:28 PM | Reply
Simon: you've misinterpreted what I've written. My claim is that the rest of the blokes who are running are no better than Maumoon given that they have no definitive answer to the ailments of Maldives. Hence, I cannot see why a conscientious citizen would vote for any of them on the grounds of a 'belief'.
As for Maumoon's autocracy, I 'believe' I know far better the extent of it than you do. I also 'believe' that you would know my disdain for Maumoon's prevalent policies. However, I don't 'believe' that people like Hassan Saeed and Dr. Shaheed are exempt from their complicity in Gayoom's plans (not unless they chronicle Maumoon's crimes, factually). I also don't 'believe' Anni has the capacity (or the necessary intellectual aides) to run the country's economy. And I don't 'believe' Umar Naseer has the moral integrity to be trusted (given that he has yet to own up to the very injustice he was dishing out). Hence, I 'believe' it'd be more prudent to let the person with the best plan be given an opportunity to prove it. If that person is Gayoom so be it. Like you said, it will not be easy for any leader to exercise autocracy anymore.
a | October 7, 2008 8:35 PM | Reply
Shaafiee:
We are talking about things we know about Gayoom and his abuse and misuse of state funds. Those are things we are sure of. If no candidate has good plans, that means all are equal in that respect. But Gayoom is the worst there in terms of corruption, malappropriation of STATE (OUR) money, suppression and oppression of political, religious and moral competition to him for almost 30 years.
I saw my old neighbor being arrested 14 years ago (because he denied Qunoot) and I still remember how he recounted how he was tortured and his beard shaved with tomato sauce by this regime. That is simply because he was against Gayoom's version of Islam. Shaafiee, this is just one little example of hundreds of such individual oppression. Rewind back to 30 years. This regime used to harass school students for questioning Gayoom's version of Islam!
Hence, I believe a conscientious individual should not and cannot vote this individual.
In our comfortable rooms abroad we might not have had the bad fortune of in some way being the victim of torture or oppression by this regime. In your comfortable room, you might not have had the chance of working for this government and firsthand seeing the level of their evil!
You talked about definitive answers. This is not arithmetics to provide definite answers. The truth of the matter is social, political and economic problems are too complex to provide definite answers. There are simply no final solutions. We all have imperfect approaches. This is true of all countries.
Politicians can make proposals of different qualities. Today we know it is not Gayoom alone who can make proposals. Anni, Hassan, Ibra, Gasim and Umar all have made proposals. But again today we know Gayoom is the worst in terms of corruption, misuse of state funds, nepotism, oppression, suppression, and torture. That is the difference between him and other candidates, at least many of them. This is why, I believe no conscientious individual can vote for him.
P.S. My 'belief' is based on reasoning. I know many of us think 'belief' is out of fashion.
sigey | October 7, 2008 9:11 PM | Reply
Maumoon: leave us alone and "back the f*** off" you have done more than enough ... go ride on a camel now.
Shaafiee | October 7, 2008 9:31 PM | Reply
Simon: let me be the one to concede in this little discussion. In my concession to you let me ask this: would you agree that Ibra is by far the most outstanding choice as our future president given all the factors we have discussed?
Shaafiee,
Yes. I was about to say that myself regarding Ibra. Now, what I said on your blog regarding your statement about Gayoom's opponent's knowledge of how to run this country being hot air was based on my presumption that you haven't actually reviewed all the candidate's manifestos etc. There being the liberal party's ideology, I thought that particular statement was uninformed.
ismail | October 7, 2008 9:37 PM | Reply
ibra is an elitist. anti-trust law? what's he talking about.
al | October 7, 2008 10:01 PM | Reply
Shafiee,
We would only know how the new blokes are if we gave one of them a chance eh? And we have room to believe that the commissions are independent as they are specifically mentioned in the constitution which was not there before the amendments. Along with the separation of powers which gives the people enough trust to believe that whosoever comes to power cannot have the luxury Maumoon had.
Shaafiee | October 8, 2008 12:21 AM | Reply
Simon: yes, I managed to complete the review of Ibra's document earlier yesterday (7th), being a little rusty in my Dhivehi reading. In my defense, these manifestos started popping up only recently.
I apologize for making the statement without completing the review of Ibra's manifesto. Although, I don't believe you mentioned Ibra's manifesto in the comment you made to my post.
Shaafiee,
You're right, I did not mention Ibra's manifesto. But then I thought you'd have done your work on that too. It is rare we find common ground eh man? hehe.
Farzana | October 8, 2008 1:08 AM | Reply
Ismail : You call Ibra an elitist. I would say he is more a purist than an elitist.Actually, I know him. He is the most humble and down to earth man you could think of. But his intellectual capacity is astounding. But you are displaying your ignorance by asking what Ibra is talking about when he proposes an anti-trust law. He is right on that one.
mohamed | October 8, 2008 2:02 AM | Reply
It's past 12:00, and the 8th of October 2008. A special day for all Maldivians. May we all join and cast that vote to make the change!
Cheers Simon!
shafiu | October 8, 2008 2:31 PM | Reply
enough is enough.
:)