Legal researcher Dr. Shamsul Falah has stated that holding the Presidential Election and the Parliamentary Election on the same day will bring changes to the constitutional framework.
In a panel discussion held by the Bar Council coinciding with next month's public referendum, Dr. Falah stated that the Constitution includes the basic characteristics of the Maldivian state, and the change currently being sought affects those basic characteristics.
He stated that bringing a change to the way the Presidential Election and the Parliamentary Election are held would be a very significant change. He noted that while every amendment to the Constitution is not necessarily an issue, it must be done in accordance with the Constitution itself.
"This is something that brings a very major change to the basic framework. Therefore, in my view, this is something that changes the basic framework," Dr. Falah said.
Dr. Falah stated that various previous Supreme Court rulings have noted, in a way that implies it, that the People's Majlis cannot pass matters that change the framework of the Constitution. Therefore, he stated that he does not believe it is the most accurate statement to say that not being able to change the constitutional framework is something that has not been accepted in the Maldives.
Dr. Falah pointed out that the People's Majlis is a very important power of the Maldivian state, and if a change is brought to the way that power is elected, it is a change that comes to the constitutional framework.
"If a change is brought to the way that organ is elected, it will also affect the system of separation of powers. That is something that shakes the system of separation of powers; therefore, what I can say is that this is something that changes the framework of the Constitution," Dr. Falah said.
