Hassan Latheef, chairperson of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has slammed Minister of Finance and Treasury Ahmed Munavvar for the delay in paying party allowances.

Latheef said on Saturday that the Finance Ministry under Munavvar has maintained an attitude of treating public finances as if it were his own person wealth.

“He cannot maintain this attitude for long” Latheef had said.

The Elections Commission has shifted blame for the delay to the Finance Ministry, claiming that they have requested the funds be provided. The commission had initially not included the party in this request.

The commission claimed that MDP had not filed its audit report and therefore is not eligible for the legally-mandated party allowance, while there was still time remaining until the deadline to submit said audit reports.

The party has a membership of 29,759, making it eligible to receive MVR 7.5 million.