The main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party has approved to give the party’s national congress the authority to choose a Presidential candidate.

114 out of the 823 members who had partaken in the extraordinary party congress being carried out in Alif Alif Ukulhas island had voted in favor of passing the amendment proposed by MDP’s Deputy Leader Mohamed Shifaz.

The amendment states that the national council or congress of the party shall determine a contestant for the Presidential Election if any situation arises where the elected candidate who won the party primaries and holds the party ticket, is unallowed to contest in the ballots for any given reason.

Opposition leader and former President Mohamed Nasheed who had initially won MDP’s ticket to contest in the Presidential Election, had withdrawn his candidacy having stated that he will not be given the opportunity to run for office. The former President had passed his message of withdrawal to the Joint Opposition Parties Parliamentary Group on Friday morning via twitter.

In his tweet typed out in Dhivehi, Nasheed highlights that he had given up the party ticket out of respect for concerns that MDP may not have a presidential candidate who is accepted by the Elections Commission.

The opposition leader said that this will officially be done at MDP’s third congress which is currently ongoing.