News Desk
Faisal Naseem, the former vice president, said on Thursday that he will contest the Maldivian Democratic Party’s primary for the 2028 presidential election, becoming the fourth declared candidate in the race for the party’s ticket.
Faisal made the announcement on “Fashaairu“, a programme on Raajje TV. He said he had spent recent days gauging the mood within the party before reaching a decision.
He served as vice president under Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the former president, and said he made up his mind after extensive consultations with President Solih, who he said gave him “very strong support.”
“I believe that is very important, if we are to go forward in this way,” Faisal said. He described Solih as a leader whom many Maldivians credit with delivering a great deal for the public during the last MDP government.
Faisal said the contest would be hard, and that he needed a team able to work around the clock. He named Adam Azim, the mayor of Malé, as his running mate. Azim appeared alongside him on the programme and said it was important for an MDP government to have both a president and a vice president from the party’s ranks.
“I accept VP Faisal’s invitation, and I am ready to go forward as his running mate,” Azim said. “The work we do will be work we do together.”
Azim noted that the two men had served together in Solih’s government and had worked professionally side by side. He said they were entering the race with Solih’s full backing.
Azim praised President Solih for steering the country through the Covid-19 pandemic and for pursuing development across the Maldives, regardless of an island’s size.
Faisal joins Fayyaz Ismail, a former MDP chairperson; Abdulla Shahid, a former foreign minister; and Dr Ahmed Shamheed, who represents Hulhumalé South in Majlis, among those who have said they will run in the primary, which is scheduled for next year.
Shahid, a former speaker of Majlis, also served as president of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly under Solih’s government. He is now campaigning for the party’s ticket.
In an online poll run by Sun Online, which has since closed, 58.3 per cent of respondents named Shahid as the strongest candidate for the MDP in 2028. Solih came second with 16 per cent, followed by Mohamed Nasheed, another former president, with 13.9 per cent. Dr Shamheed received 6.7 per cent, Fayyaz 4.9 per cent and Faisal 0.3 per cent.
Sun Online has not disclosed how many votes were cast.
