Nida is stepping out of local politics. The Islamic-inspired party will not participate in next year’s municipal elections and let us know tuesday to continue as an ’emancipation movement’. According to the party, this was decided at the members’ meeting. Nida now has two seats in the Rotterdam city council; one in Amsterdam, The Hague and Almere. Last year the party made an attempt to get into the House of Representatives, but did not get enough votes for a seat.
Also read this interview with Nida founder Nourdin el Ouali: ‘Political polarization is indispensable for attention’
The departure from politics is striking, as Nida founder Nourdin el Ouali previously expressed national ambitions. In conversation with NRC El Ouali said last year that since its inception in 2013, it has been the plan to enter the House of Representatives. What the departure from local politics means for national ambitions remains unclear. In a statement, Nida says it will focus on “promoting and inspiring national politics, media and law”. Founder El Ouali left the party this summer to work for the umbrella organization Spior of Rotterdam mosques.
The Hague party chairman Adeel Mahmood proposes that Nida will become a “broad advocacy party for Muslims”. According to Mahmood, his party in The Hague has tried to draw up a joint list of candidates with Denk for the local elections. However, the group chairman states that a collaboration has not got off the ground. In March Mourad Taimounti, the chairman of the Amsterdam faction of Denk, announced that he would switch to Nida.