Lawmaker Claims Crossroads Tourism Deal Was Worse Than Ras Malé Plan

Defending the government’s headline land reclamation agenda against mounting political fire, a MDP lawmaker argued that a landmark tourism deal struck under former President Abdulla Yameen was far more detrimental to the state budget than the current administration’s multi-billion-dollar Ras Malé project.

Dr Ahmed Shamheed, the Member of Majlis representing South Hulhumalé, launched a sharp critique on social media targeting President Yameen, who had recently condemned President Mohamed Muizzu’s $20 billion Ras Malé eco-city expansion as wasteful and called for its cancellation.

Dr Shamheed asserted that a primary flaw among Maldivian politicians is celebrating controversial deals struck during their own tenures while condemning similar development initiatives launched by rivals.

Focusing on the Crossroads Maldives integrated leisure project at Emboodhoo Lagoon—developed under Yameen’s administration—Dr Shamheed argued that the site was vastly more valuable and significantly closer to the capital, Malé, than the Ras Malé reclamation zone.

Dr Shamheed claimed he had warned previous leadership that leasing the prime lagoon for a reported $30 million  severely undervalued an asset capable of generating billions for the national treasury. He added that customs duty exemptions and direct cargo-unloading privileges granted to the resort project resulted in revenue losses to the state that far surpassed the initial lease payment.

It is illogical to demand the cancellation of Ras Malé without calling to reclaim Emboodhoo Lagoon, Dr Shamheed wrote, insisting that the Crossroads deal was demonstrably worse in its financial terms.

However, Dr Shamheed’s stance highlights a familiar political contradiction in Malé. The lawmaker’s own party was in power during the previous administration but failed to launch a formal investigation into the Crossroads transaction or attempt to claw back the lagoon assets.

Senior figures within the ruling People’s National Congress have echoed Dr Shamheed’s defence, framing the Ras Malé development as an unprecedented national achievement that will permanently resolve the capital’s acute housing crisis, dismissing criticisms from former leadership as partisan rhetoric.