“This Government Is a Joke”: Didi Says Addu Residents Want Link Road Removed if Work Cannot Be Completed

The current administration has become a laughingstock to the public, according to Ahmed Didi, the Member of Parliament for the Maradhoo constituency. He noted that as the government continues to seize land in Addu City, residents are demanding that if the authorities cannot complete the Link Road project, they should remove it from the council's jurisdiction and find a way to finalize the work.

Speaking on RaajjeTV’s "Fala Surukhee" program, Didi stated that the current administration is repeatedly and systematically attempting to undermine the authority of local councils without any established principles or regulations. The member further noted that land is being removed from council jurisdictions, allowing the government to allocate these plots to whoever they choose, whenever they desire.

Didi stated that although the government claims to be reclaiming land under the jurisdiction of Addu City for development projects, these actions are specifically intended to deprive residents of the direct benefits of those lands. The MP further noted that the situation has now become a mockery to the public.

In light of the situation, some residents of Addu City have remarked—albeit sarcastically—that perhaps the Addu Link Road should also be removed from the city's jurisdiction to finally get it repaired. Their point is that if the road cannot be fixed while under local authority, a different approach is needed. It has now been three years, and the road remains in a state that poses a significant risk to both the lives and the valuable property of the people of Addu.

Ahmed Didi

Despite assurances from Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development Dr. Abdulla Muththalib that physical work on the Addu Link Road would commence within 2024, no practical progress has been made on the project even as two years have passed.

Minister Muththalib stated that the Addu Link Road is currently in a state of severe disrepair and noted that its reconstruction would require significant financial investment. The Minister further explained that the project was awarded to the Road Development Corporation (RDC) as a cost-effective measure to ensure the work proceeds efficiently.

The project was awarded to RDC on April 8, 2025.

The government announced that work on the project finally commenced in November 2025, seven months after it was initially awarded to the Road Development Corporation (RDC). Six months later, in May 2026, RDC confirmed that they had begun clearing the site and relocating trees along the road to make way for the project.

However, Housing Minister Muththalib stated in August that the government has decided to award the project to upgrade the Addu Link Road to modern standards to a different contractor.

Despite being questioned on the matter multiple times in Parliament, Minister Muththalib has failed to provide a direct answer. Even as members repeatedly pressed for clarification, the Minister would only state that physical work on the project is expected to commence very soon.