President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said today that development was brought over the past five years after overcoming efforts to obstruct and hinder the government.
Speaking to the people of Komandoo after travelling to the island for his re-election campaign, the president said a group of people created constant "difficulties and hindrances" for his administration.
"It wasn't the case at all that we were able to achieve these successes because we didn't face any difficulty or obstacle. There were people who constantly, constantly posed difficulties and hindrances to the government. The purpose was to put their interest, that person's interest first. But we didn't allow that. We prioritized the public, the nation, your lives," he said.
The president did not name any politicians in his speech but his attack appeared to be directed at Speaker Mohamed Nasheed.
In addition to criticizing opponents, the president said at the Komandoo rally that voters faced two choices and that the people would not choose "tyranny and fear" over the peaceful and stable country under his rule.
"A lot of people will come before you. They will make a lot of pledges. You should consider what happened during these past five years. And look at the five years before that as well. Consider if you want to go into that tyranny and fear," the president said.
The president appeared to be referring to former president Abdulla Yameen's five-year term.
In his speech, the president also pledged to complete land reclamation by the end of July to connect Komandoo with the uninhabited island of Mathikomandoo in the same lagoon.
The land reclamation and shore protection project was announced in January last year ahead of the Komandoo constituency's parliamentary by-election. The MVR 250 million project was awarded to the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) on January 12, 2022.
But the two-year project did not proceed as planned with damage to the MTCC's main dredger Mahaa Jarraafu.
Visiting Komandoo a year and a half after the project was announced, the president said today that the two Komandoos would be referred to as one Komandoo in the near future.
The MTCC's new dredger will arrive for land reclamation at Haa Alif Ihavandhoo tomorrow and will come to Komandoo next, the president said.
"The dredger will come in the last 10 days of July. God willing, July will end with the two Komandoos connected as we pledged," he said.
The president said the government has a plan to establish basic services on Mathikomandoo and pledged to build 300 housing units over the next five years.
Other pledges for Komandoo included upgrading the island's health center to a hospital and developing a new airport on Koodafaru.
The project to connect Komandoo with the uninhabited Mathikomandoo involves the reclamation of 16.7 hectares of land and the building of a 200-meter pier between the islands.
Aside from President Solih, the ruling coalition's Jumhooreee Party leader Qasim Ibrahim is also contesting in the September 9 presidential election.
Nasheed, who has yet to join a party, is also expected to contest. The opposition coalition maintains that former president Abdulla Yameen remains its candidate despite serving an 11-year prison sentence on corruption charges.
