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Koodoo Fisheries to provide ferry service in Huvadhu atoll

Government-owned fisheries company Koodoo has been tasked with providing ferry services in Gaaf Alif and Gaaf Dhaal atolls on a temporary basis, according to local media reports.

In March 2013, the transport ministry terminated an agreement with Trinus-CAE Holdings Pvt Ltd to provide public transport in the two atolls following interruptions in the service.

The private company was contracted to provide ferry services in November 2009 under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) policy of the ousted Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) government.

A nationwide transport network was one of five main pledges of the previous government.

In October 2012, the MDP-majority Gaaf Dhaal Atoll Council accused Trinus-CAE of ceasing ferry services and asked the transport ministry to cancel the agreement with the company.

The council said in a statement at the time that it was receiving a number of complaints from citizens inconvenienced by the unavailability of ferry services.

“The council believes that since the company that provides this service in the atoll has been given an uninhabited island [under the PPP programme] and continues to reap benefits from the island, the public should receive adequate services,” the statement read.

Meanwhile, Deputy Director at the Transport Ministry Abdulla Shakeeb told newspaper Haveeru today that ferry services will resume on Saturday (June 22) with five boats and the same ticket prices of MVR 25 for inter-atoll transport and MVR 50 between the two atolls.

Shakeeb said the government would make an announcement in the near future seeking a party to offer ferry services in the two southern atolls. He added that the ministry expected the bidding process to be completed in the next six months.

According to Sun Online, Deputy Transport Mahdhy Imad said at a ceremony held today to sign the agreement with Koodoo that the government would cover the cost of providing the service if the fisheries company was unable to do so. The government would however not provide any finances for Koodoo to commence the ferry service, he added.

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MDP wins Omadhoo by-election

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) won a by-election on Saturday (June 15) for a vacant island council seat in Omadhoo in Thaa atoll.

According to provisional results from the Elections Commission (EC), MDP candidate Javid Hassan won the contest with 53 percent of the vote (161 votes) against three independent candidates.

Second placed candidate Nooh Ali received 85 votes while Mohamed Shaz came third with 52 votes. Fourth placed candidate Ahmed Hamdhoon received 3 votes.

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Elections Commission delays publishing amended voter registry

The Elections Commission (EC) has said it has been forced to delay the publication of an amended voter registry for September’s presidential election as a result of the number of complaints filed by the public.

The amended list of voters was originally due to have been published today in the government gazette.

EC Vice President Ahmed Fayaz said that despite the delay, the commission was in “full swing” with its preparations for the presidential election scheduled for September 7. He added that the commission was presently working to address a number of concerns, including assuring that the legitimate electorate were not deprived of their right to vote due to preventable issues.

According to the latest EC records, the electorate presently consists of 240,302 individuals – 31,008 more voters than the number of participants in the 2008 presidential election.

The statistics indicate that 123,565 males and 116,737 females are presently eligible to vote on September 7.

Voter registry to be “hopefully complete by week’s end”

Thaufeeq informed local media that the commission had received 2,790 complaints based on the initial voter registry, adding that verifying these complaints had proved to be highly time consuming.

“When we are verifying complaints about deceased people being listed in the voter registry, sometimes we need to actually send staff to the addresses in question to carry out verification of the claims. It’s this verification process that is taking up time,” he was quoted as saying.

Thaufeeq stated that with the commission’s staff working day and night to complete the required amendments to the voter registry, he remained hopeful that the final list would be published by the end of the week.

Thaufeeq further called on citizens and political parties to extend their cooperation in checking whether the amended list had addressed the previously lodged complaints.

“It is also very important that each individual checks the voter registry within five days after it is published to ensure that their details are correctly included in it,” he continued.

Previously, EC President Thaufeeq stated that the commission was confident the voter registry would be completed by a deadline of June 14.

He said at the time that the amendment of the voter registry had gone “better than expected”, despite challenges remaining in notifying all the complainants about the changes made to the list, as is required according to regulations.

Ballot boxes

The EC said it estimated approximately 500 ballot boxes would need to be set up for the vote on September 7.

“As per our current estimate, 495 ballot boxes will need to be set up countrywide, but that number may still increase,” Thaufeeq was quoted as telling local media.

According to the existing EC plans, 122 ballot boxes will be placed in Male’ City: 48 for citizens registered in Male’, and an additional 74 for citizens registered in other islands who live in Male’. While ballot boxes are to be placed in other inhabited islands, 55 tourist resorts will also have polling booths stationed in them.

Resorts which do not have a minimum of 50 eligible voters working in it will not have a dedicated polling booth. Instead, the Elections Commission is appealing to management of such resorts to allow staff to travel to the nearest island to place their votes.

Additionally, all jails and detention centres in the country will have ballot boxes, as well as other nations which have a minimum of 100 Maldivian citizens living in them. These countries are said to include India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and the UK.

Concerns pending solutions

EC Vice President Ahmed Fayaz has however expressed concern that the identity cards of hundreds of inmates will have expired prior to voting day.

“We have been discussing the issue with them. The renewal of identity card requires a fee to be paid, and the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services have told us that they do not have sufficient funds to carry out ID renewals for the inmates,” Fayaz said.

“In the end, the only viable solution is for the concerned state authorities to find a solution for this,” he said.

Political parties contesting in the upcoming election have previously spoken to Minivan News about their respective concerns over registration and identity card renewal ahead of the vote.

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)’s Membership and Campaign Committee member Ahmed Shahid spoke of such concerns, alleging that based on the current situation, “it doesn’t seem as though the state is really trying to solve the issues prior to the elections”.

“From the information we have gathered, we understand that approximately 40,000 identity cards will expire before September 7. According to the the information we have, the Department of National Registration has the capacity to issue about 350 or so cards a day. This suggests that the 40,000 people from the electorate will not all be able to get the cards renewed before the elections,” Shahid said at the time.

Earlier this month, Government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Ahmed Nihan said the party was continuing to come across issues within the recently published election registry due to incorrect information and the inclusion of voters now believed to be deceased.

He said that with an estimated third of the population also having moved from their home islands to the capital in recent years, correct registration would be another vital issue in the lead up to September.

Nihan claimed the EC therefore “has a lot of work to do” in the lead up to September to ensure its database of registered voters was both up-to-date and correct.

“The government also has to try and provide the funds for the EC and also participate with international stakeholders to get the assistance to ensure elections are free and fair,” he said.

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Police confirm 66-year old man stabbed in Addu City attack

A 66-year old man was stabbed in Addu City and robbed of his mobile phone and wallet this afternoon, police have confirmed.

The incident occurred at 2:44pm today, with the wounded man later being admitted to Hithadhoo Regional Hospital.

He was later identified by police as Hassan Ali of Saifaimaage, who had previously worked for the Maldives Police Service in a civil position before retiring with honour.

The case is now under investigation.

Local media has meanwhile reported that the man received injuries to his arm and ear in the attack.

No arrests have been made in connection with the case at present.

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Police call for public vigilance over allegations of criminals posing as officers

The Maldives Police Service (MPS) has alleged that criminals have been posing as police officers in Addu City for the last two weeks in order to commit robberies.

In light of the allegations, authorities are warning members of the public to request the ID of any officer approaching them for questioning or to conduct a search.

However, Addu City Council today alleged that it had not been informed of any cases where thieves were posing as police in the municipality, but had received multiple complaints of plain clothes officers searching people and private property without a warrant or ID.

A police media official confirmed that investigations were presently under way in Addu City into several separate incidents where individuals claiming to be officers searched members of the public in the street or at their homes before robbing them of valuables.

Police are working to identify those who are posing as police in order to commit robberies, though no arrests have been made so far, the official continued.

However, police claim that no complaints have been lodged regarding reports of officers refusing to show their identification when requested by the public in Addu City.

In an official statement published yesterday (June 15), police reiterated that all genuine officers – even those on duty in plain clothes – are required to carry their police identification. The public was therefore encouraged to ask officers to see such documentation when they were being searched or questioned.

The robberies were suspected of having been committed as part of attempts to defame the reputation of the police in Addu as officers continue with an operation designed to curb crime in the city, the statement added.

As part of this operation, a task force consisting of 50 Special Operations (SO) police arrived in the atoll on January 17, 2013 and were supposed to remain only until April 17 this year, Addu City Council has previously claimed. However, these SO force have remained in Addu City, targeting those allegedly involved in drug and gang issues.

Council’s uncertainty claims

Addressing the police warning today, Addu City Mayor Abdulla Sodig said he had not been contacted by authorities or received complaints of criminals disguising themselves as police officers to steal from the public.

However, Sodig said that with his office receiving complaints about officers allegedly forcing their way into homes to conduct searches without uniforms, warrants or identification, it was increasingly difficult for the public to verify real police in the city.

“We never get complaints about thieves breaking into properties disguised in police uniform,” he alleged. “We have received complaints that the SO perform searches of people and property without their ID or uniform. Also, people have been beaten, threatened, abused, abducted and locked up without relatives being informed.”

Sodig argued that on the back of allegations that certain police officers were conducting their duties without wearing uniforms or providing their ID, local thieves had found themselves able to exploit public uncertainty to perform robberies.

“Some people have issued complaints with us and the PIC. These are not fake police officers, they are genuine officers who are refusing to show their ID and stopping anyone on the street they like,” he claimed. “They are going out without their uniforms on to conduct searches. People here know they are ‘star force’ [SO] Police.”

The ‘star force’ was a name previously given to the police SO unit during the latter stages of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s 30 years as head of state.

Sodig claimed that in the past, the city council had been informed by police of any special criminal operations being conducted by officers. However, he claimed Addu City Council had presently received no information concerning the allegations of fraudulent officers operating in Addu.

“Police do not concentrate on thieves or drug users, rather they focus on political party members and activists,” he alleged.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from the Police Integrity Commission (PIC) at time of press.

Arrest allegations

Last month, Mayor Sodig claimed 50 people were arrested in advance of a visit by President Dr Mohamed Waheed to Addu City, alleging that “90 percent of those taken in were MDP (Maldivian Democratic Party) supporters”.

Police however denied making the arrests.

As part of an ongoing police operation in Addu to “keep the peace”, “lots of people were taken into custody and were released after their information was collected”, a police media official who spoke with Minivan News initially stated.

The same official later refuted the statement, claiming that only one person was arrested in Addu City on May 7.

Addu City Council had said it had previously requested police “provide extra strength to increase numbers to about 30 per station.”

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Asian Express crew return to Maldives

The Maldivian crew of the MV Asian Express cargo ship, which sank off the coast of India last week, returned safely to the country yesterday (June 15), the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) has confirmed.

MNDF Spokesperson Colonel Abdul Raheem said today that all 18 Maldivian nationals on the ship’s 22-member crew had returned to the country “in good health”.

The MV Asian Express, a 35 year-old Lily Enterprises vessel, was travelling from Port Md Bin Qasim in Karachi to Male’ when it encountered engine trouble, reportedly after being fuelled with contaminated oil, according to Indian media reports.

In addition to engine trouble, the vessel suffered a two-to-three-metre vertical crack on its starboard side below the waterline and a failed communication system before sinking.

The ship’s owners yesterday told local media that they had decided to sell the 35 year-old ship just before the incident occurred.

“We decided to sell the boat not because of its condition, but due to its small size and high maintenance cost. An Indian living in Dubai has offered to buy it,” Ahmed Saleem, shipping manager of Apollo Holdings, was quoted as saying in Haveeru.

After its crew had been rescued, the vessel sank with its cargo of 4000 tons of cement and 2400 tons of sand.

The MV Asian Express was carrying aggregate imported from Pakistan, after a shortage began impacting the Maldives’ construction industry.

Aggregate was previously imported to the Maldives from India under a special quota, however this was temporarily revoked on February 15 amid a breakdown in the country’s relationship over the government’s eviction of Indian infrastructure giant GMR and ongoing mistreatment of Indian nationals working in the country.

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High Court concludes hearings of Deputy Speaker Nazim’s case ahead of final verdict

The High Court today concluded hearing witness statements in the state’s appeal of Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim acquittal by the Criminal Court on charges of corruption, ahead of delivering a final verdict at a later date.

Nazim stands accused of receiving more than US$400,000 through fraudulent transactions made by a company he was found to own.

At today’s hearing, the prosecution lawyer noted that the Criminal Court had previously dismissed the testimonies of witnesses submitted by the state against Nazim. The High Court would now decide on whether to take the witness statements into account before a final verdict on the case is delivered.

The Criminal Court ruled in February last year that the witnesses submitted to the court were all staffs at a company called NAMIRA, which is owned by Nazim and at the centre of the alleged corruption.  The court concluded at the time that staff involved in the alleged fraud could not be presented as witnesses and dismissed their statements.

At today’s hearing, the prosecution lawyer was reported as stating to the court that it was apparent that staff at NAMIRA had not benefited at all from the alleged corruption. The lawyer argued that they therefore would not have had any involvement in the case had they not been asked by Nazim himself.

Before concluding today’s hearing, the presiding judge announced that unless the court required clarification on any further details of the trial, a verdict on the case would be delivered during the next hearing.

Deputy Speaker Nazim was not responding to calls at time of press.

In late 2009, Nazim was charged with multiple counts of conspiracy to defraud the former Atolls Ministry.

However, in February 2012, the Criminal Court dismissed the case against Nazim and ruled that there were no grounds to prosecute him.

The alleged corruption at the centre of the trial – first flagged in an audit report released in early 2009 – involved paper companies allegedly set up by the defendant to win bids for projects worth several hundred thousands dollars.

The case began in late 2009, after police uncovered evidence that implicated Nazim in a number of fraudulent transactions.

At a press conference in August 2009, Chief Inspector Ismail Atheef said police had uncovered evidence that implicated Nazim in fraudulent transactions worth over US$260,000 (Mrf 3,446,950).

Police exhibited numerous quotations, agreements, tender documents, receipts, bank statements and forged cheques proving that Nazim received over US$400,000 in the case.

A hard disk seized during a raid of Nazim’s office in May 2009, allegedly contained copies of forged documents and bogus letter heads.

Police further alleged that MP ‘Red Wave’ Saleem actively assisted from the atoll ministry. Meanwhile, Nazim’s wife, Zeenath Abdullah, was accused of abusing her position as a manager of the Bank of Maldives’ Villingili branch to deposit proceeds from the scheme.

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Sheikh Fareed purchases media company

Sheikh Ibrahim Fareed has acquired a license to broadcast a religious TV channel under the name ITV after purchasing a local company called Intone Media Private Limited, local media has reported.

Sun Online today reported that Fareed was already in the process of trying to begin broadcasting under the channel.

Fareed has been accused of defrauding the Islamic Foundation of the Maldives (IFM), an NGO which he co-founded, by the foundation’s President Ibrahim Fauzee. He was subsequently dismissed from his position as Vice President of the Religious Council of IFM.

Fareed later filed a defamation case against Fauzee seeking a payment of more than MVR 3 million (US$195,000) and a public apology within local media for three consecutive days.

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MDP launches higher education policy, pledges raising enrolment rate to 40 percent

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) unveiled its higher education policy in simultaneous events across 19 islands and two cities on Friday (June 14), pledging to raise the enrolment rate from six percent of school leavers to 40 percent in the next five years.

Launching the policy in the island of Naifaru in Lhaviyani atoll, former President Mohamed Nasheed said that the MDP’s objective was to usher in “a golden age” for higher education in the Maldives.

“We cannot let students finish their education after they complete O’ Levels. A student who wants to pursue higher education, even if he barely passed, will have that opportunity,” the MDP presidential candidate said.

The government would allocate MVR 500 million (US$ 32.5 million) in five years to issue student loans, provide scholarships and conduct training programmes, Nasheed said.

He added that island councils would be tasked with assessing the types of scholarships and higher education opportunities most needed for development of the island.

The Maldives shares its six percent enrolment with Somalia and Bangladesh, while developed countries such as South Korea have a rate higher than 90 percent. Neighbouring Sri Lanka meanwhile has a 15 percent enrolment in post-secondary education.

The MDP proposes in its sixth “mini-manifesto” to introduce an education fund, provide student loans with long-term repayment schemes, open new universities, colleges and institutes with campuses across the country, and conduct skills training programmes.

The party’s policy targets include the construction of two hostels or dormitories in the Male’ region, improving the Islamic studies faculty, establishing an Information Technology College, and setting up institutes for boat building, maritime training, medicine, fisheries and sports under public-private partnership (PPP) projects.

Other targets include inaugurating an education savings scheme with the government to match deposits by parents, providing plots of land to private education institutes, giving grants for financially-disadvantaged students, securing opportunities for 2,000 students to study medicine, covering course fees for students with special needs and issuing MVR 118 million (US$ 7 million) worth of student loans from a development bank during the next five years.

According to the policy, the monthly repayment for the student loans would not exceed eight percent of a borrower’s monthly income.

Moreover, the policy proposes upgrading the polytechnic institute to ISO 900 standard and establishing new faculties at the National University.

In addition to the proposed higher education opportunities, the policy also includes special projects to train 300 science teachers, 300 Quran teachers, 500 nurses and 200 pharmacists as well as an MVR 80 million programme for the improvement of lecturers.

The ‘Hunaru‘ skills training programme meanwhile targets the creation of 17,350 jobs.

On the MDP’s achievements during its three years in government, the mini-manifesto noted that the country’s first national university was inaugurated in February 2011, the first national polytechnic institute was opened in April 2010, a research center was established in Faafu Magoodhoo in collaboration with Italy’s Milano-Bicaco University, a TIVET (technical and vocational education training) authority was set up, a ‘Hunaru’ programme was commenced to train 8,500 workers in late 2011 and four private colleges were registered.

In addition, the government resumed work on a new building for the National University’s hospitality faculty, opened a hostel at the Kulhudhufushi campus, issued student loans worth MVR 300 million, facilitated significant increases in the number of scholarships offered by friendly nations, secured more than 60 tuition-free scholarships from the Bangalore Garden City College and compiled a report with World Bank aid on proposals for providing opportunities for post-secondary education.

Last week, President Dr Mohamed Waheed pledged to establish a housing policy for the people of Male’ as part of his campaign for the upcoming presidential election.

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