The allied opposition parties and their leadership remains strong, said Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, the Maldivian Democratic Party’s (MDP) parliamentary group leader.

MP Solih said this in response to the Criminal Court’s decision to sentence Jumhooree Party leader Qasim Ibrahim in absentia on Thursday.

In reference to the sentence, Solih said that it was not politically motivated and an attempt to keep the lawmaker dormant and away from the political sphere.

He said that the opposition parties remain strong and that they will remain perseverant in their reform work no matter what obstacles they face.

Qasim Ibrahim, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of Progressive Party of the Maldives (PPM), Mohamed Nasheed, President of MDP, and Imran Abdullah, President of Adhaalath Party (AP) signed a coalition agreement in March, pledging to work against the ‘tyrannical and corrupt’ tactics of the current administration.