Parliament on Wednesday accepted two legislative proposals to reduce the number of elected councillors and abolish Atoll Councils, forwarding both bills to committee for further review.

People’s National Congress (PNC) Parliamentary Group Leader and Inguraidhoo MP Ibrahim Falah submitted an amendment to the Decentralisation Act to reduce the number of councillors elected to local councils. Under the proposal:

PNC Parliamentary Group Deputy Leader and Baarah MP Ibrahim Shujau also proposed a constitutional amendment to abolish Atoll Councils.

Both proposals were accepted with the support of 56 MPs. No member voted against either bill.

The bill to reduce the number of councillors has been sent to an ad hoc committee. Members appointed to the committee are:

Under the existing Article 41 of the Local Government Act, a city with a population of 10,000–30,000 elects seven councillors, a population of 30,000–60,000 elects 13 councillors, and a population above 60,000 elects 19 councillors.

The amendment would change the structure as follows:

The proposed amendment specifies fixed numbers for Malé City Council and Fuvahmulah City Council. The next largest cities—Kulhudhuffushi, Thinadhoo and Addu—would see no change in their current representation except as outlined:

The committee will now review both bills before submitting recommendations to the full Parliament.