Jumhooree Party’s Deputy Leader Abdulla Ameen has sent greetings to the people of Maldives on the commemoration of Maldives 53^rd Independence Day on Thursday, asking all to “pledge to free our country from dictator Yameen.”

In a tweet posted on Thursday, Ameen, who previously served as Minister of State for Economic Development prior to his appointment to the post of Deputy Leader at JP, wrote that President Yameen is a “dictator who has crippled the country with corruption and injustice”.

Ameen further called on the citizens to unite and reclaim the country from President Yameen’s clutches.

While Ameen took this to twitter on Thursday, the opposition coalition’s Presidential candidate Ibrahim Mohamed Solih who was elected to represent the joint opposition parties in the September election on the 30^th of June, along with running mate, Member of Parliament for Kaashidhoo constituency Faisal Naseem, who was nominated from the four nominees for the post by Jumhooree Party on the 13^th of July, had submitted their application forms to contest in the election, on Thursday morning.

Ameen’s tweet comes at a time when President Yameen’s government and he himself has drawn public criticism for allegations of corruption and taking advantage of his position as the ruler. Voices all over the nation are calling for his resignation with religious scholars slamming the government over the use of statues as art, at a local resort, Fairmont Maldives Sirru Fen Fushi.