Leader of the parliamentary group for Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) Ali Azim declared that the relationship between President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has become fragile.
During the "Havaas" program today hosted on Clubhouse by Vaguthu News, Azim stated incidents such as some members calling for the resignation of President Solih was due to the likely weakening relationship between the two presidents.
Azim made his statement regarding the parliament representative for Maafannu-Central constituency Ibrahim Rasheed's (Bonde) call for the resignation of President Solih during a discussion on the secular bill in which MDP members heavily criticized the government.
Azim claimed he did not believe the current government is an MDP government. "Nevertheless, the MDP parliamentary group must not call for the president's resignation, or speak of him in an undignified manner", said Azim.
Azim, commenting on Bonde's proclamation, revealed that he has instructed members of the MDP parliamentary group not to call for the president's resignation. Despite his statement, the matter involving Bonde has yet to be reported to MDP'S Disciplinary Committee.
This is the first time an executive member of MDP has discussed the possibly fragile relationship between President Solih and former President Nasheed. Azim claimed he hoped to see both presidents further strengthening their relationship and working together.
The divide within MDP was most apparent during the parliament discussion on Thursday regarding the secular bill. Supporters of former President Nasheed verbally attacked the remaining members. They criticized the government for not defending the bill.