Maldivian Democratic Party’s Overseas representative in Colombo, Mohamed Naseem yesterday said that leaders of Opposition parties in Maldives have dismissed President Gayoom’s claims that democratic reforms are his legacy.

"Gayooms track record has proved otherwise", he asserted.

"The chronology shows a different picture and Gayoom was unrelenting all the way, rebuffing efforts to usher in reforms at every stage," he said.

Naseem was responding to claims made by the Maldivian President in an interview with the SLBC after the recently concluded SAARC Summit in Colombo.

He also dismissed Gayoom’s claim that he had transformed the nation from abject poverty to the highest level of prosperity in the region (citing an increase of per-capita from USD 300 to 3,000 during the past 30 years). Contrary to the Presidents claims more than 50% of the Maldivian population still earns below two dollars a day, according to the latest World Bank figures, he pointed out.

"Gayoom has made his family and cronies rich, which unfortunately had made the poor poorer, he charged.

Gayoom’s claim that food reserves in Maldives were at an all time low is also false as former President Nasir had ensured that supplies were there to last at least six months, he said.

Naseem is the brother-in-law of Nasir and a former senior official in Maldivian administration both under Nasir and Gayoom.

Naseem also contradicted Gayoom’s claim over Sri Lanka’s state radio that there were only four schools when he was elected to office and said that there were hundreds of private and rural vernacular schools which groomed pupils for the main schools in Male. "The quality of education in the Maldives then was much better.

It’s a well known fact that since his inauguration as President in 1978 Gayoom has repeatedly promised reforms but the changes have been glacial and highly inadequate he claimed.

Naseem said that the constitution, until internal and external pressure forced him to ratify amendments last week, was deliberated by a Constitutional body under the direction of the President for seventeen years, further centralising Presidential power and paving the way for a de-facto one-party state.

"His hand was forced to ratify amendments to a host of civil liberties and a bill of rights," he said.

The networks of the President and the family and their close associates remain deeply invested in the current system and profit greatly from it, a scenario which the opposition hopes to change with the ratification of the amendment to the Constitution, he said.

Though Gayoom had the opportunity and the support of the masses to introduce the changes he has not opted for a democratic rule for obvious reasons Naseem said.

"There are no civil or political rights in the Maldives and there are no decent schools in many populated islands. There has not been a public transport network in the bigger Atolls during the past 30 years though promised by the government and there are no benefits or pensions for the Senior citizens though President Gayoom has repeatedly promised them," Naseem explained.