The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and The Democrats have decided to work together for a constitutional amendment to cap the number of MPs.
The Democrats was formed by senior MPs who left MDP after the party's former leader Mohamed Nasheed fell out with former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
There were heated exchanges between the two parties during last year's presidential campaign and Democrats refused to back Solih for re-election.
However, the two parties announced today that they will work together to bring important amendments to some laws.
MDP Chairperson Fayyaz Ismail, Deputy Speaker Ahmed Saleem, Democrats President Hassan Latheef and the party's Parliamentary Group Leader Ali Azim held a joint press conference today to brief the media on their decision.
Both parties have agreed to work together for reforms, but they did not disclose how they will proceed.
There are currently 87 MPs to represent the people. Each MP represents 5,000 people. Six more constituencies will be added to People's Majlis this year, increasing the number of MPs to 93.
Democrats proposed to limit number of MPs at 76
An amendment to Article 71 of the constitution to cap the number of MPs at 76 was proposed on behalf of The Democrats by Hulhudhoo MP Ilyas Labeeb. The amendment was proposed under the party's parliamentary policies.
The amendment also proposed changes to Parliament's composition, including 55 MPs for administrative districts and eight female MPs to represent all constituencies.
In addition, two MPs to represent persons with disabilities and 11 MPs appointed by political parties based on the proportion of votes were also proposed in the constitutional amendment.
The main reason stated by Ilyas for submitting the amendment bill was the increasing expenditure on Parliament from the state budget due to the increasing number of MPs.
However, the bill was rejected during a Parliament sitting on November 27. Only 12 MPs voted to pass the amendment and 38 MPs voted against it.
Pledge by MDP during the presidential election
Former President Solih's manifesto for the re-election campaign included a pledge to limit the number of MPs.
The manifesto includes the pledge to bring a constitutional amendment to limit the number of MPs as part of the party's policy of strengthening state governance. The manifesto also includes changes to the composition of the parliament.
However, the details were not disclosed at the time.
