Elections Commission of Maldives (ECM) has proposed to provide funds for political parties in reference to the votes received for the party.
Beginning the political party discussions, President of ECM Ahmed Shareef said the electoral body seeks to amend the policy to provide funds for political parties. Noting although the constitution states political parties must be given 0.1-0.2% of the state budget, Shareef proposed to earmark the amount at 0.1 percent as generally 0.1 percent is distributed among parties. He suggested to distribute 15 percent of the funds equally among political parties rather than referring to the membership.
Moreover, the president of electoral party proposed to allocate 30% of the funds to political parties with 10,000 members and 55% in reference to the number of votes received in the parliamentary elections. The aim is to encourage small political parties to become more active in the arena, Shareef expressed.
The discussions were attended by members of political parties, non-government organisations and a representative from each media outlet.