PNC-led Majlis salary hikes 'to buy Rasmalé approval', MP Amin alleges

Amin Faizal, the People's Majlis member for Kandithimu constituency, has accused the ruling party of increasing the salaries of senior officials in order to secure approval for the Rasmalé project. The Majlis, in which the ruling People's National Congress (PNC) holds a supermajority, voted to raise the Speaker's and the Chief Justice's salaries to MVR 95,125 per month, while also increasing the car allowance for ministers and the salaries of councillors. Speaking on the SStV program "Baruhathare", Amin said that despite state debt having multiplied since the start of the administration, the burden is falling on ordinary people. He claimed that the salary increases are designed to appease top officials amid public dissatisfaction over projects such as that being carried out by Eagle Hills in Rasmalé. Amin also said he has received information that ministers have been discussing in Cabinet how land in the Maldives could be owned by foreigners, and speculated that the pay rises could be a form of bribe in that context. He referenced a 2024 speech by former Minister at the President's Office Ali Arif, who suggested people should lower themselves to a normal life by cooking rice and fish at home, which Amin interpreted as a plot to leave Maldivians in poverty. The Maldives Waterfront and Marina project in Rasmalé, a $20 billion venture with Abu Dhabi's Eagle Hills, has drawn criticism from some political entities and activists over fears that Israelis could buy property there. The government has insisted that no property will be sold to any entity connected to Israel from Rasmalé.