Ex-pres. Waheed honored with 3G Peace Award

Former Maldivian president Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has been honored with this year's Global Good Governance Awards, otherwise known as the 3G Awards. 

The Global Good Governance Awards (3G Awards) is a distinguished international recognition organized by Cambridge IFA, aimed at recognizing individuals, governments, institutions, and non-governmental organizations that demonstrate excellence in social welfare, sustainable development, and transparent governance.

Cambridge IFA is a prominent financial services intelligence firm that provides strategic advisory services and research to the global financial industry. The organization is particularly recognized for its expertise in Islamic banking and finance, offering analytical tools and insights essential to the sector’s development.

The award was presented to Waheed during a ceremony held on Tuesday at the Four Seasons Hotel Singapore. The event recognized multiple recipients from across the globe for their notable contributions to the field of good governance.

In his welcome address at the Global Good Governance Summit and Awards, Waheed underscored that the most critical aspect of governance is prioritizing the overarching interests of the people. He emphasized that the power vested in governments carries an inherent responsibility to protect public rights and safeguard the interests of citizens.

"But, sadly only a few do everything they promise and even fewer are held accountable when they don’t," Waheed said.

Waheed further observed that good governance entails the transparent exercise of power, ensuring responsiveness to the needs of the public. He asserted that genuine good governance can only be realized through principled leadership. According to the former president, the primary expectation of the public is that leaders refrain from abusing power and remain free from corruption.

“That the rule of law will always be upheld, that the rights of the disadvantaged majority will not be suppressed by the wealthy few. Similarly, the rights of the minorities will not be trampled by the tyranny of the majority. When power is exercised outside of these legal and moral guardrails, power loses its legitimacy," Waheed added.

He defined good governance as the recognition of and respect for public participation, equality, and justice, ensuring that citizens receive the full spectrum of social and economic benefits.

The former president also emphasized that the principles of good governance must be applied equitably within the international system. He expressed concern that the United Nations system has been weakened by a limited number of powerful nations, noting that certain countries have been permitted to occupy and colonize the territories of others.

"The occupied Palestinian territories are being seized by Israel in blatant violation of international law. Some nations openly incite instability in other countries to serve their own interests. The suffering endured by the people of Sudan, Yemen, Lebanon, and Congo due to these actions is indescribable," Dr. Waheed said.

He further highlighted that in Gaza and Southern Lebanon alone, more than three million people have been forcibly displaced from their homes. Dr. Waheed expressed concern over the absence of an effective global governance framework capable of addressing such issues.

While acknowledging the expansion of global access to information, he noted that the mechanisms of dissemination and control over information on the internet remain concentrated within a small number of entities.

"This was quite evident in the geographical disparities in access to information on the genocide in Gaza, and the current war against Iran and its coverage on major western media," Waheed detailed.

Concluding his remarks, Waheed stressed that this is a critical juncture to advocate for the principles of good governance, exercise sound judgment, and work collectively towards ensuring global security and lasting peace.