The Hanimaadhoo Island Council has warned that development projects and municipal services on the island are at risk of coming to a standstill, as the council is forced to utilize its own budget to cover the administrative and essential service costs of nearby Hirimaradhoo island.
This follows the government's failure to release the mandatory block grants required for Hirimaradhoo’s operations.
In a statement released last night, the Hanimaadhoo Council noted that despite efforts to secure the block grants for Hirimaradhoo in accordance with the President’s directives, there has been no indication from the government as to when these funds will be disbursed.
Hanimaadhoo Council slams government for neglecting Hirimaradhoo residents
Despite the decision to relocate the population of Hirimaradhoo to Hanimaadhoo, the project has shown no progress. The government has yet to provide a definitive timeline for when the relocation will take place.
The council also publicized a detailed breakdown of the expenses incurred from its budget during the month of May to sustain Hirimaradhoo’s operations, totaling MVR 267,780.43.
The expenditures included:
- Staff salaries and pensions: MVR 160,419.94
- Cleaning of public areas: MVR 55,800.00
- Operating Quran classes: MVR 21,000.00
- Waste management site maintenance: MVR 15,000.00
- Council security services: MVR 6,600.00
- Women’s Development Committee (WDC) allowances: MVR 5,866.56
- Internet and telephone bills (Ooredoo and Dhiraagu): MVR 3,093.93
If these costs continue at the current rate, the annual expenditure is projected to reach MVR 3.2 million.
The council emphasized that if the government continues to withhold funds, essential and municipal services for Hirimaradhoo will have to be financed indefinitely using the budget allocated for the residents of Hanimaadhoo. This diversion of funds is expected to lead to delays or the potential suspension of services in Hanimaadhoo.
"We note with regret that we may be forced to halt or delay development projects currently being undertaken by this council for the progress of Hanimaadhoo," the statement read.
"As we are compelled to cover [Hirimaradhoo’s] expenses from the budget of Hanimaadhoo’s residents, we offer our sincerest apologies to the people of Hanimaadhoo for this situation."
While Hanimaadhoo faces the threat of stalled projects, Council President Ali Ibrahim had previously cautioned that the lack of block grants would also inevitably impact certain operations within Hirimaradhoo itself.
Relevant government authorities and the Ministry of Finance have yet to issue an official comment regarding the matter.
