Maumoon Abdul Gayoom " Towards New Heights ": Afternoon Press Brief At the Media Office

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Afternoon Press Brief At the Media Office

MALE, Maldives

These are the highlights of today’s Press Brief held at the Maumoon 2008 Media Office at 1630hrs.

The Deputy Media Manager Mr. Ali Waheed, Maumoon 2008 legal consultant Mohamed Fizan and Mohamed Hanim’s legal representative Ibrahim Riza spoke at today’s brief.

Upcoming Events

Mr. Waheed updated the media on the upcoming campaign events for this week.

DRP Presidential candidate, Mr. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, will meet the residents of Hulhumale’ tonight. The meeting is to be held at Hulhumale’ International School at 2130hrs.

Mr. Gayoom will also attend an event held for the youth in Male’ tomorrow night. The event will be held at Kalaafaanu School in Henveiru ward at 2300hrs.

The candidate will also tour Laamu Atoll over the weekend.

DRP Proposes Debate on Urban Centers

Mr. Waheed extended an invitation from the Maumoon 2008 Campaign to other Presidential candidates to nominate technical professionals to debate the feasibility of “Urban Centers” as per their manifestos.

According to him, the purpose of this debate is to share the feasibility and practicality of the promised “Urban Centers” with the public so that they can make an informed decision based on technical information.

In answer to questions from the media, Mr. Waheed said that all Presidential candidates should already be prepared to send their nominees to the debate as all their manifestos should have been compiled with the assistance of trained professionals.

Mr. Waheed also noted that this debate is one in a series of planned debates on manifesto content to increase public awareness the relative practical achievability of the promises candidates have made in them.

Urban Centers have been promised in almost all the Presidential manifestos circulating among the Maldivian Public. Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) candidate Mr. Mohamed Nasheed has promised 7 such centers while independent candidate Dr. Hassan Saeed and Islamic Democratic Party (IDP) candidate Mr. Umar Naseer have both proposed 4 and DRP Presidential candidate Mr. Gayoom has promised 2.

MDP Terrorist Links

In response to a repeat question about DRP-MDP cooperation, Mr. Waheed denied the existence of any such link. However, he said that it is possible that the DRP and MDP might agree on issues in parliament solely in the best interests of the people.

In addition, Mr. Waheed also reminded the press that we have our own Presidential candidate, running mate and manifesto so there is no reason for us to join with the MDP.

He stressed the clear links between the MDP Alliance leadership and terrorist activities that took place in the Maldives.

Mr. Waheed further empahsized Mr. Nasheed’s family connections to the perpetrators of the terrorist attacks in 3 November 1988 Male’, which claimed 19 innocent Maldivian lives. He also spoke about MDP Alliance running mate Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hussein Manik’s family links to the early ‘90s bombing incident.

Mr. Waheed then concluded that the people of the Maldives have not forgotten that the MDP leadership has blood on their hands.

Supreme Court Cases are Media Circuses

Speaking on the high-profile cases recently filed by the Social Liberal Party (SLP), Mr. Fizan said that this campaign does not have to and will not respond to what he called “orchestrated media stunts”.

The first hearing of the SLP’s case against the constitutionality of the Elections Commission’s decision to approve Mr. Gayoom’s bid for the presidency was held today at the Supreme Court (SC).
Mr. Fizan further expressed this campaign’s complete faith and confidence in the SC judges’ experience, qualifications and integrity.

“The judiciary is now unbiased and independent. So are the other independent commissions. Mr. Gayoom’s name will be onj the ballot paper and, with the will of God, we will win”, Mr. Fizan stated.
Mr. Fizan spoke about the details of court proceedings in today’s hearing. He said that the SLP’s case is flimsy as the only grounds on which they contest the constitutionality of Mr. Gayoom’s eligibility is based on Article 107 (a) of the New Constitution. Mr. Fizan said that under the New Constituion, Mr. Gayoom has the right to run for President on equal grounds with the other candidates.

Hanim vs. Civil Service Commission (CSC)

Mr. Riza updated the press on the progress of the Hanim vs. CSC case regarding the unconstitutionality of the CSC’s actions against Mr. Hanim.

Mr. Riza said that Artile 53 of the Civil Service Act (CSA) 2007 contradicts Article30 (a) of the Constitution.

Mr. Hanim was demoted from his position as Director General at the Ministry of Youth and Sports following his appearance at the DRP Presidential campaign launch.

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Development Heights in the last 30 years

1. In 1978 the GDP per capita of the Maldives was USD 200 but today it is USD 3,000 - a 15-fold increase.
2. In 1978 there were only 4 government schools and 15,000 students. Today, there are 349 government schools and more than 86,000 students studying in the Maldives.
3. In 1978 there were only 65 university graduates in the country but today there are more than 3,000.
4. In 1985 there were 23 doctors and 74 nurses in the country, but now there are 550 doctors, 1,200 nurses, 600 medical personnel, and 800 community health workers.
5. The Infant Mortality Rate in 1978 was 120 per 1,000 live births, but today the number has been reduced to 10.
6. From 1978 till today, the Maternal Mortality Rate has been decreased from 6 to 1 per 1,000 live births.
7. Child Mortality Rate of children under 5 has been reduced to 18 per 1,000 live births from the previous figure of 180.
8. Life expectancy has been increased from 48 years in 1978 to 73 years in 2008.
9. In 1978 there only 7 doctors for all Maldivians totally but today there are 500 plus doctors
10. In 1978 there were only 7 doctors working in the country, but today the number exceeds 500.
11. From 1978 to 2008, the number of hospitals in the Maldives grew from 1 to 22.
12. The number of tourist arrivals in 1978 was 29,325 but today the figure stands greater than 675,000.
13. There were only 17 resorts and 1,300 beds in the Maldives in 1978. However, today there are 94 resorts and 22,000 beds.
14. The fish catch in 1978 was 25,800 tons but it has increased to 184,158 tons in 2006.
15. There were 413 mechanized fishing boats in 1977 but today the number exceeds 2000.

His Excellency Mr. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom

His Excellency Maumoon Abdul Gayoom is truly a man of the people. He is a leader who has earned the people’s trust and one who understands the needs of his people. It is under his skilled stewardship that Maldives became a highly respected member of the international community. Gayoom has maintained religious unity and promoted Islam as a religion of peace, tolerance and understanding. He is a philosopher, an academic and an Islami Scholar. Campaigning under the slogan of “Towards New Heights” he is undoubtedly the best contender in the presidential race.

Born in Male’ in 1937, to a middle-class family, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom demonstrated academic potential at a young age and, following early schooling in the country, went first to Al-Azhar University in Cairo and later to the city’s American University. He obtained an M.A. in Islamic Studies at Azhar, where he also studied law and philosophy. His Degree in Islamic Studies earned him an academic appointment as Lecturer in that discipline to Nigeria’s Abdullahi Bayero College, a faculty of Ahmadu Bello University. According to the work of biographer Graham Wilson, Gayoom is one of the three most intellectual students to ever graduate from Azhar University. Gayoom married Madam Nasreena whilst in Egypt and started his family while working in Nigeria.

Gayoom returned to his homeland in 1971 and began a long and successful career in serving the nation. His public service, which began with a teaching post at Aminiyya School, one of the only three government schools in the country then, is one of the most distinguished. He served as the Manager of the National Shipping Department, which quickly led to his becoming Director of the national Communications Department. By 1974, he had established his reputation as an able administrator and consequently, was appointed Special Under-Secretary at the Office of the Prime Minister. His first overseas appointment was to the diplomatic post of Deputy Ambassador to neighboring Sri Lanka which was followed quickly by his appointment as the Maldives Permanent Representative to the United Nations.

On his return to Male’ in 1977, he was appointed Minister of Transport, and then in November of 1978 was nominated as Presidential candidate by the Citizens’ Majlis winning a record 92.9% of the popular vote in the referendum which confirmed him as the people’s choice for the post. The people’s decision has proven to be a prudent one for the country; a decision that brought the Maldives, with its relatively small geographical size and few resources, rapid progress and development, as well as an established and reputed position in the international arena.

The record-breaking progress, of the country, in the past 30 years under Gayoom’s able and far seeing administration is truly remarkable. Gayoom has guided a country poor in natural and human resources, within 30 years to astonishing heights of progress. This change did not just come about of its own accord. It is an undeniable fact that it was Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s able leadership that guided the country to those heights.

The pace of socio-economic development in Maldives is a testament to Gayoom’s hard work and vision. The multiples increase in per-capita GDP, increase in average life expectancy in the Maldives from 48 to 71 years, the decrease in the rate of child mortality and advancements in the educational and health sectors all bear witness to this fact. Gayoom’s leadership has enabled Maldivian fishermen to harvest the wealth of the Maldivian seas and made Maldives a synonym for the best of what a relaxing holiday can be.

After 25 successful years of nation building, at the inauguration of his 5th term to the Presidency, Gayoom announced that in this, his 6th term, he would prioritize the full and modern democratization of the now fast developing Maldives. The successful implementation of the education programs which he initiated in his first term in 1978 and the excellent results of his social and economic strategies had resulted in a young and educated population, who Gayoom believed, were now ready and primed to enter into the boisterous and animated arena of a modern, liberal democracy. Gayoom, had hoped that his Reform Agenda which he proposed in June of 2004, would be completed by the end of this 6th term, however it was not to be and Gayoom the originator and prime mover of the Reform Agenda is running for president today to ensure the smooth progress and successful culmination of the process of reform and democratization that he initated five years ago.

Significant achievements have already been made under Gayoom’s Reform Agenda which include a new, modern and liberal constitution whose Bill of Rights is amongst the most comprehensive in the world and in accordance with International Standards. Independent Institutions required by the new Constitution have now been created including the recently established Supreme Court, that has ensured that the powers of the executive, legislature and judiciary are now fully and effectively separated. A free and vibrant media is now flourishing in the country. These changes brought about, in the face of local and international skepticism and even active resistance, was implemented with patience, perseverance and foresight by Gayoom.

However, as these institutions are creations of the New Constitution, they are still in their infancy, some only a week old. They need time to mature and gain experience and acceptance. While the Maldives has a proud history which is more than 2000 years old, the new democracy of the Maldives, is yet a fledgling one. These will be testing times. The draftsman, who with foresight and wisdom, drew up these blueprints, is invaluable in these times, so that the rights, which bring with them corresponding responsibilities, are woven into the fabric of the Maldivian way of life and become part of our culture. This is too difficult a challenge and important a responsibility to be passed onto a new comer, a challenger with no experience and maturity, wisdom or foresight. This is not the time for experimentation. It’s the time for the only contender with a proven track record.

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom is ready to serve the people and take this country to new heights in five dynamic years.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Afternoon Press Brief At the Media Office

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Development Heights in the last 30 years

His Excellency Mr. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom

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