In the Maldives Chess Association, each registered club holds one vote in electing the Association’s Executive Committee. This voting power determines who runs national chess affairs, from event organization to team selection and funding decisions.

Weak Enforcement of Club Requirements

According to the Association’s regulations, a club must have participated in a certain number of National Club Championships to qualify for voting rights.
Previously, there was also a condition requiring each club to organize at least one chess tournament, but this rule has never been enforced in practice.

As a result, many clubs now exist only on paper, without making any real contribution to the development of chess in the country.

Lack of Contribution and Transparency

Almost all of these clubs:

• Do not organize tournaments or chess-related activities.

• Do not financially support players or offer prizes in competitions.

• Often rely on junior players who participate for free, with no coaching or development programs in place.

These clubs contribute little or nothing to the chess community, yet retain equal voting power in electing the leadership of the Maldives Chess Association.

The Real Problem

This situation creates an environment where some individuals or families can register and control multiple inactive clubs, securing disproportionate influence over national chess governance. This is obvious from the club list above, with one family controlling 5 clubs which is 31% of total votes!

Such a system discourages genuine clubs and organizers who actively work to promote the game. In the past, there have been incidents where this concentrated control was used unfairly, including the injection of ineligible teams into tournaments, manipulation of tournament scheduling, and influence over national team selection processes.

These practices undermine fairness, transparency, and the integrity of Maldivian chess.

 Call for Reform

For the integrity and growth of chess in the Maldives, it’s time to implement meaningful reforms:

1. Enforce existing regulations — Require every registered club to organize at least one open rated tournament per year (with prize money) to remain eligible for voting rights.

2. Review voting eligibility — Limit voting power to clubs that are active, transparent, and demonstrably contributing to chess development.

3. Increase transparency — Publish the activity record, event history, and financial contributions of every registered club.

4. Expand representation — Introduce individual voting rights for key contributors to Maldivian chess, such as:

   • Players ranked in the Top 10 (Open and Women)

   • Holders of FIDE titles (e.g., Arbiter (FA & above), Trainer (FI & above), or titled players)
     This would ensure fair representation and balance in a small chess community like the Maldives.

Only by upholding these standards can we ensure that chess in the Maldives is governed by those who truly support and grow the game, not by inactive entities created merely for control or influence.