Dictator Gayyoom will rig it to win it

Editorial

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Ahmed Moosa, Editor-in-chief, Dhivehi Observer, 2 October 2008
 

Are you on the electoral register? Does anyone know the total no of eligible voters? Does anyone care?

Although some opposition groups are wishfully thinking that this could possibly be a "fair and free" elections, the Maldives Dictator has all the plans in place to rig the vote on October 8th, the first ever multiparty presidential election to be held in the Maldives, after almost 5 years of campaigning and hardships.

Firstly, the procedure by which eligible voters needing to register to vote in this election is also marred in controversy. Several thousand people are left out because they could not meet the deadline. This day and age, with advance technology, especially with internet database softwares, with such a small voting population like the Maldives, the entire voting list can be pulled out from an online national ID card database at any location within seconds, verifying all personal details, so proof of identity should have been sufficient. Once a person votes in a location, it can be recorded and the voter cannot vote again at a different location. However, Golhaabo decided to do otherwise because he knows that this time around, the vast majority of the Maldivian people will be voting against him and he wanted to keep a broad number to rig the vote.

Secondly, Golhaabo is keeping the eligible voters list, or Electoral Roll as known elsewhere, as a closely guarded secret. No one it seems knows the total number of eligible voters in any ward of Male' or any specific island. Last month the election commission put up a list of people eligible to vote, without an index, so you could not get the total no. of voters from any list. It also had several deceased people and a revised version was not uploaded later. A source within the government assured last week that the final list will be put on display with the total no of voters in each island and ward of Male' but instead, what they have done now is provide a search form for individuals to see if they are on the database.

Go and check if you are on the database... here is the link given on the official Election Commission website. Search link http://www.maldiveseligiblevoters.com/ 

If you search with your national ID number, it should give you the name of your house and voting booth code. And, if you search with the other option, it gives your name and details. What is interesting here is, if you are not in Male' or near your booth on the day, you are doomed as well. You can't vote!

According to most analysts, vote rigging would be done in the outer Atolls mostly, where the reach of election observers will be minimal. Opposition is strong in vote shares there. Rigging in Male' will be based on number of eligible people who live in Male' but are not registered to vote due to the time constraints. That will be a bulk number for Golhaabo to add to his tally in Male'.

Also heavy rigging is planned abroad. For example in India more than 3000 eligible voters exist but no one knows how many registered. The same is true in Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia.

UNLESS THE TOTAL NUMBER OF REGISTERED VOTERS ARE CLEARLY GIVEN, GOLHAABO WILL RIG THE VOTE WITH EASE.

We all recall how the eligible voting population inflated several times in the last referendum we had. So, the refusal to make these data public is a clear sign of what Golhaabo and his regime are intent on doing next week. We demand that the Election Commission gives out the exact number of people on the electoral roll.

Furthermore, while the Election Commission appears to have been "independently elected" by the Majlis, it is hard to accept that the Commission would be independent of Golhaabo's influence. Take a look at these facts.

1. The President of the Election Commission Mohamed Ibrahim was the one who was in charge of DRP elections during the DRP Congress
2. He was fostered by the parents of the Defence Minister Ismail Shafeeu and grew up with him in the same household (H. Orchid Maage).
3. The majority of members in the Commission are known supporters of DRP.

We may hope that this would be a free and fair elections. We may even allow ourselves to fantasize a little bit that this could indeed be possible. We may dream that this time it would be a truly independent elections commission dedicated in the service of the people of Maldives that is finally in control of our electoral process. One can understand to some extent why people hope and dream this - that this is indeed the goal that all of us have worked so hard towards achieving - a fair and free elections in the Maldives for the first time. And after all, without dreaming of bigger goals, very little can be achieved. So in a sense, it is understandable that some of us are allowing ourselves to cling on to the flicker of the light at the end of the tunnel.

But sadly, we maybe badly deluding ourselves. It maybe the Parliamentary-Presidential Referendum all over again where we hoped that there will not be rigging but Golhaabo stole the referendum right under our noses.

This time again, we are probably in for a very rude awakening when the Dictator rig it and win it in the first round.

People, brace yourselves! This old man will not give up his grip on power and the ownership of the chicken that lays 'Golden Eggs'.