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The issue of V Rakeedhoo harbor has been a contentious hot topic in recent weeks. We were in Rakeedhoo last night to represent @lgaMaldives , along with State Min @Akramkdeen & DG Shaanaa from @MoNPImv & MP Gasim (who represents Rakeedhoo in Majlis) & MP @waddey_
Firstly, a background of the issue. Rakeedhoo ppl have been waiting for a harbor for years, and the project commenced following the usual harbor design seen in majority of islands. However a group of concerned people of Rakeedhoo raised the issue that this would destroy the beach
..which would not only be environmentally disastrous but have an impact on local tourism being newly developed in the island. Planning Min developed an alternative model that offered a solution for this. Following a petition of 71 signatures, LGA decided to intervene & requested
..to halt the project until a public consultation could be held on this with Planning Ministry. Unfortunately due to bad weather and Covid19 restrictions travel was not possible until yesterday. During this time, 2 additional petitions were received on the issue, with people
..living in the island opting for the old design with 100 signatures & those mostly living out of Rakeedhoo opting for alternative model with 113 (later 123) signatures. Planning Min presented a third option last night to a gathering of Rakeedhoo ppl which took into consideration
..concerns of both sides. Unfortunately many in Male were not able to join as they were still unable to travel. But the people of Rakeedhoo have been imploring to expedite a solution, and many in the island were adamant rhey should have priority over preference as rhey were
..actually living there and the harbor impacted their everyday life not others. Those living out of Rakeedhoo were insistent they were forced to leave the island because of lack of facilities for their families, which might be developed if local tourism were to thrive & for that
..to happen they needed the beach. Rakeedhoo is a small island with a population of about 370, approx voting pop of 284. But this small community presented bigger questions for debate. Do residents have a bigger say in development plans, when everyone gets an equal vote at local
..level elections? How important is it to factor in the ppl's demands when designing something like a harbor that will have long term implications, but that technical ppl might be equipped with latest studies & knowledge to assist in designing in a more sustainable manner?
How much can we as a state authority mandated with ensuring public are consulted and engaged in decision making, intervene without imposing to facilitate an open dialogue? How much assurance can we give to a ppl who have been continuously promised better days & let down?
At the end of the day, our assurance was that we have come to them because their view on the matter is paramount, the harbor project will not be shelved which was their biggest concern, and it was up to the ppl. The ppl were adamant they wanted the old design. That was their say.
As there were no adequate meeting space to meet with social distancing we met at the futsal ground. I thank the council for facilitating the meeting. Unfortunately it was very dark and my battery was low, so pls excuse very grainy dark photos.
I want to thank LGA's DGs Adam Shareef and @shammoon_adam profusely for their efforts to facilitate and continue a dialogue, and to DG Shaanaa from Planning Ministry who was exceptionally thorough and impressive with the technical details. MP @waddey_ was a gem, as always 
