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It was the most difficult ‘state of existence’ yet, among my closest colleagues during days through the campaign and on the day of referendum due to differences of political beliefs between me and them. I have believed from the beginning that presidential system is the most suitable one for the Maldives and voting to that effect is more important than that of ending Gayoom’s regime.

Then their was this effort by each us to guess and forecast the results of the referendum; I don’t really know why I thought I was an expert but these were my arguments;

1. If our perception that is born out of MDP’s loud voice, that all young people support everything MDP says, is right the Parliamentary System will win by a 20,000 vote majority.

2. If, however, the people do distinguish that this referendum is not about the politics of parties but ‘about a system which will serve best the nation’ the presidential system will win by a 20,000 majority.

My thoughts were based on the fact that all sides MDP, DRP and public for a long time suggested that presidential system was best for the Maldives until MDP decided to use their campaign on referendum as a tool to remove Gayyoom off the power as soon as possible.

However, my colleagues and many others who supported MDP and DRP thought that people will vote something to the effect of party lines and the result shall be 50/50, and may weigh to either side. Colleagues, here at the resort, believed it will be a narrow victory to the parliamentary while people I know from elsewhere who supported DRP suggested it will be a victory to the presidential.

A gut feeling, but shaped, my thinking that the people will vote either to remove Gayyoom or to install the system they believed in. Now, it appears people did just that by deciding ‘presidential’ - chose the nation over politics.

The people’s majority at the ballot boxes did ‘challenge’ and say ‘no’ to MDP’s idea that removing Gayyoom at any cost is the most important thing. The people also left a serious message to Gayyoom that they know how to vote in and vote out.The referendum’s result for the parliamentary system may be work out by estimating the number of those who voted ‘just against Gayoom’. Gayoom could try to guess his popularity by estimating the people who voted ‘just because they wanted a presidential system’.

‘The People’ might not just forgive MDP, again, for rejecting the public’s decision. Arguably this is the first time we the people made an informed and free decision. Gayoom may better be careful to claim too much credit for what people think something they did all by themselves for the reasons they know best. It seems, in the people’s decision, there are spanks on the buttock of both political power houses – MDP and DRP.

“The people have spoken” kept coming to my mind as the sun rose to that 19th August morning.

Maldives, for a long time has never felt this loved by her people. Every one of us has something to say, some view on something related to our nation. Hopes are high; hopelessness seems to be a thing of the history. It has become more so with the highly-energised campaigns towards the upcoming vote by the people to decide which system of governance “ parliamentary or presidential - is the best for the nation.

My uncle woke up me from the after-noon-nap with his furious voice over the phone, yesterday. He didn’t like finding my mom (his sis) on the DRP campaign rally and wanted me to stop her from getting involved. He is a die hard MDP boy. I wanted to laugh at his situation but he was too upset. I am not sure to what extent was I successful but I tried to console him. Relieved, I felt, when he hung up the phone while I was searching my mind for the best sentences.

What a fine time to live and be a Maldivian? Elder sister differs from younger brother on political views and are actively making differences in the interest of their loved nation. Late into the evening I switched on the television to hit on the best ever political debate done in the Maldives. It wasn’t just another People’s Majlis Kasoati. Politicians were hard trying to convince the public for their preferred system of governance. Yes, they were trying to convince ‘me’ for what they thought will serve the best our nation. I felt like being treated a rightful citizen by people in power, first time in my life time.

Debate went on! I waited and listened and the debate ended. To my dismay, I have been still left with the initial questions that I started to make up my mind on what system of governance presidential or parliamentary will be most suitable for the country.

1. What system with what mechanisms will safeguard people’s interests against co-operate influence on national policies?

3. Parliamentary or Presidential; which one will allow easy access for the ‘citizen with new ideas and new problems across and beyond basic structures?

It seems like we have chosen to take a long road, step by step, to commit every mistake that every other nation has gone through on the cycle of democracy. It is said old and young all successful democracies join and live on a learning curve. We seem to like the opposite.

Corporate control, foreign hegemony and extent of public participation are modern challenges of initiating and developed democracies.

Why are we stuck at the basic simple issues? British system is this and American system is that. Can’t we, since we have all the experiences of all democracies to start with, come up with something better than all?

Boys and girls; if you are to take one take a challenge worth taking.

My wife’s intelligent, smart and well disciplined cousin just accomplished pleasurable 8 As grades in GCE O Level and took the first place nationwide. Congratulations! The other day I asked if he knew how to ride a bicycle. He said he didn’t but I am sure if we had bicycle riding as subject he will bring straight As from class 1 to 10th like he did in every other subject.

Knowing how to ride on two wheels is no small thing to achieve. Wheel is one of the oldest and most important inventions, which originated in ancient Sumer in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) in the 5th millennium BC. So is the locomotion it provided for the man. Two wheels riding appear to hold an eternal place in human life; bicycles or motorbikes. I guess most people, even the richest, fall few times from the bicycle on the way to four wheels riding.

I remember, I started secretly claiming on to my dad’s bicycle when I was just seven. By the age of 9 I was already riding a 24 inch bicycle. My left foot goes half way the paddle circle, and I wait a long 15 seconds on the middle bar for the right paddle to come through to the reach. But you should have met me those earlier days; I used to be excited, rode where ever I found more children to look at me and I knew nothing else to talk about in my 3rd Grade class room. Of course my 24 inch and ugly Rallie horse was nothing comparable to the present day children’s best friend the computer.

Every kid loves it. Every adult feels inferior not knowing how to use it. Personal computer could be the best thing happened to common man since the bicycle. Society has come to recognise personal computers and their portable equivalent, the laptop computer, as icons of the information age. We in the Maldives have even a GCE O level subject known as Computer Studies. It is one of the subjects my cousin in law earned an A grade.

Little 4 year old Jauna, my cousin in law, arrives in room as I was to close the laptop. I asked if she knew how to use a computer. Yes, yes, she said. She was head over heal to play with the laptop and prove me her skills. Surprised I may have been, but she has been playing with her brother’s PC for last two years, she knows her way around Windows Office and Coral much better than I ever imagined.

Bicycle might have, as sociologists suggest, enlarged the gene pool for rural workers, by enabling them to easily reach the next town and increase their courting radius, as the computer of today. Bicycle manufacturing lead to industries of vehicle producing, many of the industrial skills of metal modelling and factory management as did information technology, recently.

But you shouldn’t take bicycle riding too seriously, as much to introduce a subject as GCE O Level in Bicycle Riding. Provide a bicycle at home; kids will learn how to ride at a younger age than you think. They can at their fifteen handle most of the repairs. It will be a huge waste of time and money to introduce a GCE O Level in Bicycle Riding and Repair at schools so that they become engineers in future. I think the basic science subjects they follow are more than enough for the due course.

A bicycle costs US Dollars 400. So will it cost, if you make it happen, for a Personal Computer from china, to reach a Maldivian home. You may be scared to touch the computer mouse like my very big aunt who at the age of 20 had to learn bicycle riding at the same time as I did. Little Juana is not. Its just a computer mouse, not a rat!

Get ride of the subject GCE O LEVEL in Computer Studies! Introduce a GCE O Level in Maldives National and Cultural Studies, instead. If the August 18th vote is hypothetically for GCE O LEVEL in Computer Studies OR for Maldives National and Cultural Studies; what will you vote for? Education, I believe, is about nation building. It can never be equal to bicycle riding as that of computer studies.

Little Jauna seems destined to become another girl who will ridicule our national policies for its stupidity at her fifteen. She might even feel alienated for she is likely to have no-idea and no-feel for the identity, culture and history of her motherland.

Male the capital is considered a pride by many and a menace by the rest. If you happen to be born in a rural island you will grow up perceiving the place is sacred. It is fine if you think the same since its the capital of the Maldives. But I am scared to death from the time I heard about the crack on the coral-bedrock of Male. The other day a friend sarcastically joked; All we need is a big enough needle. Those scientists from Australia who are investigating the wound can stitch the place in no time.

We will in future live in a few facilitated population centres around the country. It is often boasted even by people who wont believe it can happen. Not so obvious, but often projected idea is we will all live in Males. All of us will have life as great as in Male. Like if life in Male is a life, so to say.

Lets call Male an island city, assuming that Male is our equal of cities in main-land nations. Male suffers form all diseases that cities does. Everyone who lives in Male has a reason why he/she doesn’t like life in Male. It doesn’t matter who you ask. Everyone wants everything in the opposite way of how we have it in Male’ as of now.

May I suggest then what you actually want are island townships. Not island cities! Since, no one thinks we are civilised enough and can ever be as long as we live in islands.

I for one, all I need is a dignified livelihood in a place I can belong myself without alienation and worries that society and bedrock might crack at anytime.

Maldives just celebrated Independence Day. Of the many contexts the idea of ‘independence’ gets discussed, one is to contrast with ‘hegemony, the indirect control of one nation by another, more powerful nation. I do not have an idea, I presume no do you know whether we the Maldives are politically under such pressure from any other country.

Can it be the system of governance which has loose holes that keep people blindfolded when the government signs different international treaties in the name of citizen? Those ‘strategic decisions’ were never discussed in the People’s Majlis; I hear! Designed blackouts by authorities and incapacitated journalistic community keep the public unaware of the context where many decisions are taken for the nation. It looks as if caution, analysis and common consensus on where we want take our nation tomorrow is irrelevant.

Are we careful enough about not going ‘dependant’?