Abdul Raheem Abdulla, acting leader of the Progressive Party of Maldives-People's National Congress (PPM-PNC) coalition, has called on opposition supporters to escalate protests to greet President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih on campaign trips.
Speaking at a rally at the PPM meeting hall on Tuesday night, Abdul Raheem said opposition supporters voiced disapproval and "chased off" President Solih during his trip to Meemu atoll.
Thanking the opposition supporters who protested on the islands, he called on supporters to come out stronger in the future when President Solih visits the islands.
"We need to come out much stronger when [President Solih] goes to islands... why is that?.. We need to come out because it's not only president [Abdulla] Yameen who has suffered from his tyranny.. the whole Maldivian people have," Abdul Raheem said.
He also called on the Maldivian military to ensure the legitimacy of September's presidential election.
About 14 people protested against President Solih when he visited Dhiggaru on July 16 during a campaign tour of Meemu atoll. Two protesters were briefly detained and released.
On most islands that the president visited, a few opposition supporters voiced dissent upon his arrival. But a disturbance only occurred on Dhiggaru and arrests were made on the island.
The protesters mainly called for the release of jailed former president Abdulla Yameen. The opposition presidential candidate was sentenced to 11 years in jail last December on bribery and money laundering charges related to the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal.
Following the protest in Dhiggaru, Home Minister Sheikh Imran Abdulla issued a stern warning to the opposition.
"Regardless of whether it's people from The Democrats or people from PPM or any other party, don't try these shenanigans anymore when we arrive on islands. All the islands. If you try these shenanigans, we will be much stronger," said Imran that night, suggesting that protests would not be allowed.
Speaking at the Dhiggaru campaign rally that night, President Solih also said the opposition was using the same political tactics employed by his Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) in the early 2000s.
"Sometimes I think our competitors are in the early 2000s. We are seeing some of the work we started doing in some islands during those days. I respectfully request them to stop it and do a properly competitive campaign," he said.
