We do not discriminate in providing services: Department of National Registration

Maldives Department of National Registration has made a statement that do not discriminate by political affiliation when they process National Identification Cards (ID cards) and that they treat all their services as fundamental services.

The person in charge of the Department of National Registration Fareedha Yousuf said that her department is not aware of a person’s party or the colour of their party when they provide services. She assured that her department does not discriminate.

“We have stepped away from political influence to provide these fundamental services to the public. All our employees work the same way. From the people who come to get their ID cards processed, we only check whether all the required information is provided. We do not check what party they belong to,” Fareedha said.

She said that the number of people seeking to get their ID cards processed has increased in the recent past, mainly as these days are school holidays and also because the presidential election is up ahead. She said that they now receive over 250 requests for ID cards and that it is predicted that the number will still increase.

Her department received harsh criticism in 2008 following accusations that they had worked outside office hours to deliver ID cards for a certain group of people. Reflecting on the accusations, Fareedha said that they are baseless accusations, but agreed they had opened the office after office hours and stayed up late into the night to process ID cards to all those that had applied.

“A lot of people wanted to process their ID cards in 2008. So we did stay awake and work on two different nights. Our intention was to deliver the cards to those who had requested them. The majority of the work we did was to hand over the cards that had come in from the atolls. But we did not provide any official service during the late hours we had opened the office. Besides, 2008 was a year that a lot of people wanted their cards done,” Fareedha said.

She said that the accusations that followed those two nights in 2008 where they worked late hours at night were baseless rumors.

She said that her department will not discriminate in processing ID cards for the public and assured that they will not give any special priority to members of certain party of party colour.