Allegations of state asset mismanagement; HDC seeks developers for Hulhumalé luxury project with just six days' notice
HDC has also recently faced accusations of selling vacant land in Hulhumalé to private companies without making public announcements. Some of these companies, involved in real estate and infrastructure development, are believed to have close links to senior government officials.
HDC Managing Director Zuhair - land has been allocated for luxury housing projects in Hulhumalé
The Housing Development Corporation (HDC)'s recent announcement calling for parties to undertake a luxury housing project on 1.3 million square feet of land in Hulhumalé Phase II has sparked significant allegations of state asset mismanagement.
In its announcement, HDC revealed that the deadline for submitting an Expression of Interest (EOI) is next Thursday at 12pm. This luxury housing development will be the largest of its kind in Hulhumalé, with a designated area of 1.3 million square feet, including a 125,387.81 square feet initial land allocation. The project will be located in an area zoned for 15-story buildings.
A key point of criticism is the unusually short six-day deadline for bid submissions. Given the project’s scale, valued in the billions of Maldivian Rufiyaa, and the complexities involved in constructing 15-story buildings, this short bidding period is a significant departure from standard procedures.
Even smaller projects have typically been given longer timeframes for bid preparation. The rushed nature of the announcement has raised serious concerns among the public.
The limited timeframe makes it nearly impossible for interested parties to conduct thorough technical studies, prepare detailed financial models and submit comprehensive bids.
As a result, there is growing suspicion that the six-day period may be intended to favor specific parties who may have been given prior notice and had time to prepare. The tight deadline casts doubt on the fairness of the process for such a large-scale, multi-billion MVR project.
HDC has also recently faced accusations of selling vacant land in Hulhumalé to private companies without making public announcements. Some of these companies, involved in real estate and infrastructure development, are believed to have close links to senior government officials.
In addition to this, reports indicate that the President’s Office has instructed HDC to allocate land to Chinese companies. These revelations have fueled concerns about the transparency and fairness of land allocations, especially as HDC continues to lease commercial plots in Hulhumalé without public announcements.
Opposition parties have raised alarm, alleging that these land deals may be linked to efforts to influence elections and facilitate opaque dealings with powerful interests.
Despite these allegations being reported to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), there are growing concerns that the cases are not being investigated or progressed appropriately.
