Ratification and beyond

The new constitution is (or the amendments to the 1998 constitution are?) to be ratified tomorrow, the 7th of August 2008, Insha Allah.

No doubt, there are those of us who would still want to live in the past. Some others may want to focus on the future. There may also be some who would want to keep an open mind.

In any case, the Maldives will be a new Maldives after the ratification. How the new Maldives will look like depends much on how the three branches of power, the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary conduct themselves. How each branch conducts itself depends on the integrity and values upheld by the individuals who make-up that branch as well as on the integrity and values upheld by that branch as an institution. Much also depends on the attitude adopted by each of these branches when interacting with each other.

A too confrontational attitude can result in frustration and hostility. Such a situation can have far reaching implications on the work of these institutions and consequently on the socio-economic development of the country.

Such a scenario is more likely if the party to which the head of the executive belongs does not have a majority of seats in the legislature, and in a situation where the political atmosphere is charged. It may not be untrue to describe the current political atmosphere in the Maldives as highly charged.

I, as a concerned person, appeal to our leaders to exercise restraint, to ensure a smooth transition to the new system. I am full of hope and optimism that our leaders would demonstrate integrity, and conduct themselves with dignity.