The Housing Development Corporation (HDC) has revoked redundancy notices sent to municipal service employees who do not wish to transfer to the Male' city council.
HDC's management has decided to cancel letters sent to the employees asking them to resign with three-months pay under the "redundancy policy," the corporation said in a message sent to municipal staff who refuse to transfer to the city council.
A senior HDC official confirmed to Adhadhu that the redundancy notices have been revoked. However, HDC has not officially commented on the matter.
A letter sent to some HDC employees last week stated that there would not be any work for them to do at their department when municipal services are transferred to the city council.
The letter asked employees at HDC's municipal department who do not wish to transfer to the city council to inform the corporation before 12 pm today. The employees were told to resign with salary for three months.
The decision to transfer HDC's municipal services to the city council was made under a campaign pledge of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. When the municipal services are transferred to the city council, HDC staff will be offered the opportunity to choose their place of employment, he pledged during the presidential election campaign.
Detailing the pledge to transfer municipal services at a rally where the People's National Congress (PNC) manifesto was launched on August 23 last year, Muizzu accused the government at the time of misleading HDC staff over job security in relation to his pledge to transfer to the Male' city council the budget and resources used by HDC to provide residency registration services.
The President pledged to offer the opportunity for HDC staff to choose their place of employment when municipal services are transferred while speaking at a rally in Shaviyani Kanditheemu.
"I said I will transfer the budget. With the budget, resource, meaning vehicles and other facilities used for it will be transferred together. The transfer of employees is within their own discretion. They can stay at [HDC]. When the budget is transferred to us and employees who want to transfer have transferred, we will announce and take the additional staff needed [by the city council] through that budget. So no one will lose their job," said Muizzu, who was mayor of Male' at the time.
HDC has decided to provide the current salary for one year to employees at HDC's municipal department who transfer to the city council.
Hulhumale' is part of Male' city but the island was under the ownership of HDC, a government-owned company. The Male' city council previously attempted to bring Hulhumale' under the council but the former government decided to keep the island under HDC.
Amid the dispute in December 2021, the Male' city council canceled the registries of all land registered under HDC. But the move was challenged legally and the court overruled the registry cancelation.
Transferring municipal services in Hulhumale' to the Male' city council was included among pledges to be fulfilled during President Muizzu's first 100 days in office.
