Maldives president calls for peaceful elections on poll-eve

A day ahead of crucial presidential polls in the country, Maldives President Mohammed Waheed Hassan Friday called for restraint to ensure peaceful elections and urged people to accept the outcome.

Addressing the nation in a televised broadcast, President Waheed said all citizens must prioritise national peace and harmony over other interests.

He called on people to ensure that even the weakest were able to exercise their right to vote freely and asked them to accept the election result, reported Xinhua.

"Democracy is the will of the majority. Nonetheless, democracy is not a perfect system. Of all existing forms of government, democracy is believed to be the best form of government by the majority of people," said the president.

The Maldives has faced political turbulence since democratically elected president Mohamed Nasheed was forced to resign in 2012 by then vice president Waheed in an alleged coup.

Transparency International in Maldives has said that politicisation of police and judiciary are the two main concerns for free and fair elections in the largely peaceful run-up to the presidential poll.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban-Ki-moon and the Commonwealth Secretariat as well as India have called for credible and peaceful elections in the Maldives.