Author: Mohamed Naahee

Police probing MDP MP Imthiyaz Fahmy’s “contemptuous remarks” against judiciary

Police have begun investigating opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Imthiyaz ‘Inthi’ Fahmy for allegedly making “contemptuous remarks” against the  judiciary, during a TV program broadcast by opposition-aligned television station Raajje TV.

Fahmy told Minivan News that police called him on Wednesday and informed him that the case was being investigated on the judiciary’s request.

However police media official Sub-inspector Hassan Haneef said he was “unsure” whether  police were currently investigating the matter, but said cases concerning contempt of court previously been investigated and sent for prosecution.

Police sent a case concerning Imthiyaz Fahmy for prosecution in June 2012, requesting he be charged with disobeying orders, obstructing police duty and physically assaulting a female police officer during an MDP demonstration on May 29, that had followed the dismantling of the party’s protest camp at Usfasgandu.

In a subsequent statement condemning “excessive use of force” against demonstrators, Amnesty International staed that according to Fahmy, “police in Dhoonidhoo told him he was arrested for ‘disrupting peace’.”

The next day in court, police stated that he had been detained for ‘physically attacking a woman police officer.”

Fahmy denied the charges pressed against him by the prosecution.

Regarding the new police investigation, Fahmy claimed the judiciary was attempting to silence elected members of the public and that allegations of contempt of court were a facade.

“People elected me to find faults in institutions such as the courts find ways to reform them, to correct those faults. I have been elected as a member of parliament by the people to talk about such issues and that is my responsibility. It is a duty vested in me by the people and I will remain firm in executing that duty,” Fahmy told Minivan News.

He further claimed that discrepancies and flaws within the courts were already being widely discussed by the general public.

“The courts themselves do not comprehend the real meaning of the concept of judicial independence,” he claimed.

“They should also understand that dignity and honour is not a one-way train. It goes both ways. Their actions should be of a standard and performed in a transparent fashion so as to have dignity.”

In a statement issued during her visit to the Maldives in February 2013, United Nations Special Rapporteur (UNSR) on Independence of Judges and Lawyers Gabriela Knaul  stated that she had found that the concept of independence of the judiciary has been “misconstrued and misinterpreted” by all actors, including the judiciary itself, in the Maldives.

“The requirement of independence and impartiality does not aim at benefiting the judges themselves, but rather the court users, as part of their inalienable right to a fair trial,” Knaul stated in her concluding statement.

Beyond Knaul, Fahmy noted that several other international experts on judicial independence, including International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), judicial expert Professor Paul H Robinson, United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) as well as the report by the Commission of National Inquiry (CNI) – which was set up to look into the legality of the controversial ascension of President Mohamed Waheed Hassan to presidency on February 2012 – had highlighted “serious flaws” within the judiciary.

“The first thing is that the judges were wrongfully reappointed. The constitutional provisions indicate that the judges were appointed by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) wrongly without proper consideration being given to Article 285 of the constitution. That is unconstitutional,” he added.

Fahmy – who is a lawyer himself – claimed that other powers of the state including the legislature and the executive had been set up in accordance with the 2008 constitution and that it was only the courts and the judiciary that had failed to be established in accordance with the new constitution.

“Am I being punished for coming out and speaking the truth? What is so wrong in me reiterating the same facts that are being highlighted by several respected international authorities on the same issue?” he questioned.

Apart from Fahmy, cases against several other MDP MPs are either being currently investigated or being heard in the courts including that of MP Ali Waheed (the party’s Deputy Parliamentary Group Leader), MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor (the party’s spokesperson for international affairs), MP Abdulla Jabir, MP Mohamed ‘Matrix’ Rasheed and MP Ibrahim ‘Bondey’ Rasheed.

Charges faced by the MPs include contempt of court, obstruction of police duty as well as offence of consumption of alcohol.  According to the constitution, a member of parliament loses his seat should he be convicted of a criminal offense that requires serving a sentence longer than a period of 12 months.

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MDP propose US$1.05 billion mariculture industry as part of election pledge

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has pledged to develop a mariculture industry in the country should former President Mohamed Nasheed be reelected in September 2013.

Mariculture is a specialised form of aquaculture which involves the cultivation of marine products such as pearls, oysters, fish and sea cucumbers in the open sea, or in nets or ponds exposed to the sea.

During a function launching the party’s policy on Kendhikulhudhoo island in Noonu Atoll on Saturday, the former president suggested that such an industry could generate US$1.05 billion (MVR 16.19 billion) within five years, should the government be able to successfully run at least 60 mariculture projects throughout the country.

“If we can successfully run  60 projects within five years, we will create 1800 new jobs and the country will receive MVR 16 billion in export revenue,” Nasheed said.

Nasheed claimed the party would establish a soft loan scheme worth MVR 200 million to support the people who wished to become involved in the new industry. He said the MDP hoped to establish mariculture as one of the country’s key industries, alongside fishing and tourism.

The Marine Research Center (MRC) established in the Maldives in the 1980’s has extensively researched the country’s reefs and lagoons and identified several ways in which mariculture activities could be carried out, Nasheed noted.

“What we have learned from this research is that mariculture is a very viable industry that could reap a lot of benefit to the country,” he said.

According to the MRC’s website, current aquaculture products farmed in the Maldives include grouper, sea-cucumber and pearls.

The MRC noted that the first pearl culture activity occurred with financial assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1996. When the five year project ended, MRC and the UNDP carried out a follow-up five year project from 2003 to 2008.

During a function to launch a sea cucumber development project on the same island in 2011, Nasheed – then President – elaborated that aquaculture and mariculture projects in the Maldives would ensure “the economic growth and economic viability of the society”.

Nasheed, who partook in a sea cucumber hunt during the event, also claimed at the time that it was beneficial for the country utilise the commercial benefits of marine resources in order to “achieve means of income other than revenues gained from the tourism industry”.

Speaking during Saturday’s function, Nasheed highlighted that while successful mariculture projects had been carried out during the three years of his government, a lack of technical expertise in the field was a key challenge for the expansion of such an industry.

A future government led by the MDP would open higher education opportunities in the country in collaboration with the Maldives National University (MNU), he said.

Eco-education

In 2011 during Nasheed’s presidency the MNU began offering courses in environment management – the first higher education program focused on environmental consolidation in the country – with levels varying from bachelors degree, advanced diploma, diploma and degree foundations.

In a bid to encourage people to take up the program, then Ministry of Environment and Energy also opened full scholarship opportunities to those who wished to take up the course.

Nasheed, speaking of the challenges involved in establishing a mariculture industry, said the lack of a hatchery to produce fish-feed was a key challenge.

Others included difficulties with transportation and logistics, which he said could be resolved by enhancing the transportation system established during the last three years of his presidency, would resolve the issue.

“Attention must be given to the environment surrounding us when we carry out any type of business and we should not obstruct the natural life surrounding us while carrying out any business,” he said

Nasheed also promised to establish both quarantine facilities and research facilities that will monitor and evaluate the businesses and would utilise the existing Maldives Food and Drug Authority (MFDA) to ensure the products produced by the industry met the necessary standards.

“Everything we do should be carried out in a sustainable way. MDP will seek to maintain the mariculture industry in a sustainable manner and that businesses involving mariculture will be properly monitored and evaluated,” he said.

Large-scale mariculture not viable; “Fish feed doesn’t grow on trees,” says DRP

Deputy Leader of the government-aligned DRP, Ahmed ‘Mavota’ Shareef, questioned the viability of introducing large-scale mariculture to the Maldives, and slammed the MDP’s economic predictions as inaccurate and an election ploy.

Shareef told Minivan News that when considering the huge investment costs required for mari-culture, funding would be better spent on providing technologies and know how into expanding industrial fishing in the Maldives.

“As opposed to mariculture, which needs large amounts of capital investment, it is much easier to go out and catch fish,” he claimed. “Tuna here is easy and cheap to catch, all people need is a boat. With freshly-caught fish you will get a much higher price than for mariculture.”

As a comparison, Shareef argued that massive amounts of bait and feed would be required to support the MDP’s predictions of a mariculture industry that would generate just over a billion US dollars in revenue over a five year period.

“The availability of fish feed will be a major issue. It does not just grow on trees,” he added.

Shareef also claimed that the mariculture sector was presently dominated by India, China and the US, mainly based around shellfish. However, he argued that mariculture represented just a small proportion of total global fisheries industry.

Shareeef said the DRP would instead favour boosting resources available to the country’s fishermen through supplying bait, satellite communications equipment, longer lines and focusing on forming cooperative fishing companies to boost catches and help establish large-scale industrial fishing.

Responding to Shareef’s remarks, former Press Secretary during Nasheed’s presidency Mohamed Zuhair dismissed claims that the MDP’s predictions were an election ploy, insisting the party had extensively studied the subject.

“The DRP is entitled to their own views. But I don’t believe they have studied the matter that is being discussed. Our predictions are based on extensive research study. The Maldives has previously tested and tried mariculture and the results are promising,” he said.

Zuhair also claimed the MRC had promoted many opportunities in the field of mariculture during former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s government, but these had not progressed because of a lack of incentives from the central government.

“Each of our islands has direct access to the sea and can easily engage with mariculture. This is not something new to the Maldives; it is tried and tested,” Zuhair said.

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President Waheed “most patient, just and capable” among candidates: Dr Hassan Saeed

Dhivehi Qaumee Party (DQP) Leader Dr Hassan Saeed has said he believes President Mohamed Waheed is the only presidential candidate who has the required “patience and drive” to work alongside people with differing views.

The recent comments by Saeed – who currently serves as Special Advisor to President Waheed – were made the same month the DQP formally entered into a coalition with the President’s own Gaumee Iththihaadh Party (GIP) ahead of elections scheduled for September 7 this year.

Both the DQP and GIP are small political parties currently facing potential dissolution for lacking the minimum requirement of 10,000 members as stipulated in the recently passed Political Parties Act.

Speaking to local newspaper Haveeru on Sunday (April 14), Saeed said that President Waheed was the most “academically qualified” candidate.

“He stands even far taller when you compare his international experience  and experience in government than any of the candidates. So if you look at it in any angle, this man is far more capable than all of the remaining candidates,” he said.

Despite the remarks, in February 2012, in a leaked audio clip, Saeed was heard describing President Waheed as “politically the weakest person in the Maldives” .

In the audio clip, he also went onto mock the size of the GIP’s support base, claiming at the time that the party’s only members were “Dr Waheed and the wife, that Ahmed ‘Topy’ Thaufeeg, [Secretary General of the GIP] and Waheed’s secretary at the President’s Office”.

Dr Saeed was not responding to calls at time of press when contacted by Minivan News.

Saeed – who was himself a presidential candidate in 2008 and ended the race at third position with 16 percent of the popular vote – claimed that there was a high possibility that many other government-aligned parties would follow the DQP in joining President Waheed’s coalition.

Saeed said these parties could include the government-aligned Jumhoree Party (JP) of business tycoon MP Gasim Ibrahim, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) and the Maldivian Development Alliance (MDA), led by tourism magnate MP Ahmed ‘Sun Travel’ Shiyam.

Gasim and DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali are both presidential candidates for their respective parties.

The religious conservative Adhaalath Party has also publicly pledged its support to President Waheed, last month announcing plans to form a coalition with the GIP.

Saeed claimed that all political parties, except the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), were welcome to join the coalition.

He claimed that should such an alliance find an agreement on a common ideology, then it could possibly “change the face of Maldivian politics”.

Giving his reasons why the door was closed for the MDP – the largest political party in the country – Saeed claimed that party’s presidential candidate, Mohamed Nasheed, was not a person who had the capacity to work in a coalition government since he always had problems in “digesting opposing views”.

“Chasing and slowing down”

Saeed claimed that the former president’s “impatience” would not allow him to work in a coalition government, adding that the “science of making a coalition government work” required patience and tolerance.

“One cannot simply run at the pace he wants to,” he said. “A coalition partner would always chase the president and slow him down, should he take such a pace. There should always be an environment for dialogue. [In a coalition,] one cannot simply take a wrong way and jump into the sea. Likewise, you cannot go in the right direction as fast as you want. But in general, a coalition government would always be heading in the right direction. Nasheed cannot be like that,”

The MDP previously said that it would not look to form a coalition ahead of elections this year.  However, Saeed claimed by contract, that there was no political party interested in forming an alliance with the main opposition party of the country.

“[The MDP] are only getting the opportunity to work in a coalition within the parliament. Therefore, MDP is seen to work in collaboration with other parties in parliament. They don’t have a problem working as a coalition in parliament. But outside the parliament, they keep saying that they do not want a coalition. This is because, they really don’t have anyone to form a coalition with,” he said.

Speaking during a recent party gathering, former President Nasheed stated that leaders of various political parties had learned “bitter lessons” over the difficulties of running a government by sharing cabinet positions among different political parties over the last four years.

“A cabinet in which one minister belongs to this party and another belongs to that party, cannot run a government,” he said. “I want the people of this country to remember that, when there is word of coalition, it means of forming a weak government.”

Meanwhile, Chairperson of the MDP, MP Moosa ‘Reeko’ Manik echoed similar sentiments claiming that the MDP could not work with political parties demanding political positions as a pre-condition of any alliance.

“There is no place in the MDP for those who come to us and demand a package of four cabinet positions, 12 judges, three warehouses and the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA). But it doesn’t mean all doors are closed for those parties interested in working under a common political ideology,” Manik said at the rally.

Political weight

Saeed this month also criticised former President Gayoom’s Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).  The PPM is fielding Gayoom’s half brother MP Abdulla Yameen as its presidential candidate.  Saeed claimed that even Yameen should be backing President Waheed instead of the other way round.

Dr Saeed alleged that Yameen was a candidate who was too “hard to sell” to the public, claiming there remain a number of unpleasant “characteristics” that came to the minds of voters about him.

“Yameen will face the anger of anyone who hated Gayoom’s 30 years [in power]. Yameen will get the hatred of every person who was tortured during Gayoom’s time. He would not get the support of anyone who wished to leave the past. Even the person who wishes to support Yameen would hate him because Gayoom is right beside him,” he told Haveeru.

“There are a lot of people who hate dynastic rule.  A lot of businessmen also suffered during Yameen’s tenure as the trade minister. So they would have a hard time to back him.”

Saeed’s remarks in local media were met with harsh criticism from PPM MP Shifag Mufeed, who described the DQP leader as someone that lacked any political weight.

“The Maldives has two political ideologies. It is that of former President Gayoom’s ideology and that of former President Nasheed’s. Though he says that no one would join those two ideologies, Dr Hassan Saeed himself must know that he does not even have the weight of a wheat grain in Maldivian politics,” Mufeed said in parliament yesterday (April 15).

Shifag also slammed the government of President Waheed, claiming that a bill proposed to parliament on increasing an existing Airport Service Charge was an attempt by the government to recklessly increase its income so that it could be utilized in “fooling people” to vote for him.

The PPM and DQP are both members of President Waheed’s national unity government.

Saeed’s election history

After facing defeat in the first round of the 2008 presidential elections, Saeed publicly announced unconditional support to the MDP candidate Mohamed Nasheed during the subsequent run-off election.

Once Nasheed was elected president, the MDP alleged that Saeed took a U-turn on his own unconditional backing and had demanded several cabinet portfolios for his supporters.

Saeed was later appointed as the special advisor to the president – a cabinet minister level position – in the new government.  Meanwhile, Saeed’s running mate, Dr Ahmed Shaheed, was appointed as the Foreign Minister and current Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was given the cabinet portfolio of Communication and Civil Aviation.

However, following a falling off with Nasheed, Saeed left the government claiming that his “diligent” advice was not considered by the former president.  Later, Jameel was sacked from the government and Shaheed joined forces the MDP.

Leaving the government, Saeed and his fellow party colleague Jameel quickly turned against former President Nasheed and became outspoken critics of his administration.

‘Hate-pamphlet’ scandal

In January 2012, just a few days before the controversial fall of Nasheed, DQP released a 30-page pamphlet accusing Nasheed’s government of working under the influence of “Jews” and “Christian priests” to weaken Islam in the Maldives.

“When the Nasheed administration established diplomatic relations with the biggest enemy of Islam [Israel], the government agreed to change the school curriculum and teach our small children about the goodness of Jews,” read the pamphlet. “The Jew’s plan and way of thinking is to divide Islamic countries.”

The Nasheed administration denied the allegations and claimed that the pamphlet was filled with “extremist, bigoted and hate-filled rhetoric” intended to incite hatred among public towards the government.

Following President Waheed’s controversial ascension to power on February 7, 2012, Saeed was reappointed as the Special Advisor for the President while his colleague Jameel was given the position of Home Minister.

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Deputy Speaker Nazim “mastermind” of scam to defraud atolls ministry: state prosecutors

Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ahmed Nazim was the “mastermind” of a scam to defraud the now-defunct Ministry of Atolls Development, state prosecutors told the High Court today.

Attorneys from the Prosecutor General (PG’s) Office claimed at today’s appeal hearing that Namira Engineering Private Limited – of which Nazim was a former board director – had won bids from the atolls ministry with fraudulent documents and paper companies.

The prosecutors argued that the MP for Meemu Atoll Dhiggaru, as a board director, was ultimately responsible for any corrupt dealings involving the company.

Contacted by Minivan News for comment today, Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim said he was “too busy to comment on the matter”.

In February 2012, the Criminal Court dismissed four corruption charges against Nazim. The decisions came just days after the controversial transfer of power on February 7 that brought President Dr Mohamed Waheed to office, with the court ruling that Nazim’s “acts were not enough to criminalise him.”

The Prosecutor General’s Office (PG) however appealed the rulings at the High Court in June 2012.

The appeal

During the first hearing of the appeal today – concerning Nazim’s Namira Engineering Private Limited winning a bid to provide 15,000 national flags – state prosecutors accused the defendant of setting up paper companies for the scam.

The bogus businesses were then used to win bids for projects worth several hundred thousand dollars, the state prosecutors argued.

State Prosecutor Abdulla Raabiu contended that board directors of a company should be liable for criminal transactions carried out in the name of a company under the Companies Act of Maldives.

Raabiu also asserted that Nazim was the “mastermind” behind the fraud and had fully benefited from the deal.

Highlighting apparent lapses during the previous trial against Nazim, Raabiu alleged that the Criminal Court had refused to hear witnesses produced by the state, referring instead to previous statements they had given to the police.

Furthermore, he stated that the court had dismissed the state’s witnesses as suspects of the same crime.

Raabiu argued that it was a familiar practice for the prosecution to withhold charges against suspects with lesser degrees of criminal liability in order to ensure successful prosecution of a prime suspect in a criminal case.

The prosecution said it believed the prime suspect would have a greater degree of criminal liability in the same case.

The state prosecutor also alleged that the case had been decided based solely on Nazim’s word and that the court had refused to give the opportunity to the state to prove its case against the defendant.

Requesting an order for a retrial, Raabiu claimed that the case was concluded in violation of the constitutional stipulation demanding equity in hearing both sides of a case.

The defence

Responding to the allegations by the state, Nazim’s defence counsel Aishath Shizleen contended that it should not be Nazim, but those involved in drafting the bid documents that should be held liable.

Instead of prosecuting the real wrong-doers, she argued, the state had produced them as witnesses against Nazim even when the investigation had clearly found the witnesses had themselves produced the fake documents.

Furthermore, Nazim’s lawyer argued that a witness needed to have certain standards as per a Supreme Court ruling, which had explicitly stated that evidence given by a witness who had even the slightest involvement in a crime could not be accepted to the court.

The lawyer said that the stipulation was also prescribed in the Quran.

This, she said, was the reason for which the Criminal Court had decided to reject the witnesses produced by the state. Nazim’s defense counsel requested the High Court to declare that the decision reached by the Criminal Court was valid and that no retrial was required.

Scam allegations

Along with Deputy Speaker Nazim, MP Ahmed “Redwave” Saleem (then-finance director at the ministry) and Abdulla Hameed, former Atolls Minister and half brother of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, were charged in late 2009 on multiple counts of conspiracy to defraud the Atolls Ministry.

The scam – first flagged in an audit report released in early 2009 – involved paper companies allegedly set up by the defendants to win bids for projects worth several hundred thousand dollars, including the fraudulent purchase of harbour lights, national flags and mosque sound systems.

According to the report, the documents of Malegam Tailors, the company which won the bid, showed that it shared the same phone number as Namira. Fast Tailors, another company that applied, also shared a different phone number registered under Namira.

The other company Needlework Tailors, which submitted the bid had an employee of Namira sign the documents under the title of general manager, while the fourth company named ‘Seaview Maldives Private Maldives’ did not have any record of its existence, according to the report.

However, the auditors had noted that the Seaview bid documents had an exact date error also found on Fast Tailors documents.  According to the auditors, the error was sufficient to prove the same party had prepared both company’s bids.

The prosecution began in late 2009, after police uncovered evidence that implicated Hameed, Saleem and Nazim in a number of fraudulent transactions.

At a press conference in August 2009, police exhibited numerous quotations, agreements, tender documents, receipts, bank statements and forged cheques showing that Nazim received over US$400,000 in the scam.

A hard disk seized during a raid of Nazim’s office in May 2009 allegedly contained copies of forged documents and bogus letterheads. Police alleged that money was channeled through the scam to Nazim, who then laundered cash through Namira Engineering and unregistered companies.

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Raajje TV wins court battle against President’s Office over discriminatory treatment

The Civil Court has today ruled in favour of private broadcaster Raajje TV in its lawsuit against the President’s Office for barring the opposition-aligned television station from President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s press conferences and functions.

“[The court] orders the President’s Office not to discriminate against Raajje TV in providing opportunity to cover functions, events and press conferences,” reads the judgment (Dhivehi).

Judge Ali Rasheed Hussain noted that the President’s Office’s decision to not cooperate with Raajje TV was proven at court by its own admission.

Summoned by parliament’s Government Oversight Committee last week following a complaint filed by Raajje TV, President’s Office Media Secretary Masood Imad claimed that Raajje TV was not invited to press conferences because the station did not fit criteria or standards of reporting set out by the President’s Office.

According to Masood, the policy of the President’s Office was to invite “responsible and experienced” media outlets, which include private broadcasters DhiTV and VTV, state broadcaster Television Maldives (TVM), newspapers Haveeru and Miadhu, as well as internet publications Sun Online and Minivan News.

Meanwhile, followings its own inquiry into the matter, the Maldives Media Council (MMC) asked the Prosecutor General’s (PG’s) Office to press charges against the President’s Office over what it found to be discriminatory treatment.

The non-cooperation by the President’s Office with Raajjee TV have also been met with condemnation from both international and local NGOs, including the Maldives Journalist Association (MJA).

At the Civil Court trial, the President’s Office, represented by the attorney general, alleged that Raajje TV had attempted to capture video footage of the premises, disrupting internal security at the office.

However, the judge dismissed the claim on the grounds that the President’s Office had the right to file a complaint at the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) over the alleged violation of broadcasting rules.

As the President’s Office was an institution that “served the people,” the judge ruled that the it should also comply with the Maldivian constitution, which guarantees equal treatment and administrative fairness.

Press freedom and freedom of expression were also protected as fundamental rights in the constitution, the judge noted.

Speaking to Minivan News, Chairman of Raajje TV Akram Kamaaluddeen said today’s verdict was a huge success for Raajje TV well as for the Maldivian media.

“Today, the court has guaranteed that no one can meddle with the rights vested in the constitution and that no one can discriminate the media,” he said.

Akram added that he expected Raajje TV to be invited to future press conferences and events at the President’s Office.

Invitation only

Despite the Civil Court judgment, Masood Imad denied that the government failed to cooperate with Raajje TV.

“We talk to them and provide them with answers to their queries. In future too, we will maintain our position of cooperation,” he told Minivan News.

Masood added that he has been in touch with officials at Raajje TV today and invited them for a meeting at the President’s Office tomorrow (April 15)  to “talk out” any differences.

Akram said that he had not been aware of any communication with the President’s Office since the court ruling at time of press.

The Civil Court previously ruled that a similar decision taken by the Maldives Police Service to not cooperate with Raajje TV station was unconstitutional. The Civil Court Judge, issuing the ruling against the Police at the time, said that he believed such a decision was “extremely dangerous and significantly serious” and could result in “chaos and infringement of social harmony.”

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Reports of Speaker Shahid, DRP MPs’ defection to MDP unconfirmed

Rumours that Speaker of Parliament Abdulla Shahid and two other government-aligned MPs, Alhan Fahmy and Abdulla Abdul Raheem, have joined the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) are being widely circulated by local media.

Minivan News was unable to confirm the reports at time of press as Speaker Shahid and the other MPs were not responding to calls. The DRP has acknowledged the rumours, but has said it has not been officially informed of the switch.

Local media has also reported that government-aligned MPs Mohamed ‘Colonel’ Nasheed, MP Ali Azim and MP Hassan Adil are also preparing to join the opposition.

Speaker Shahid, Ali Azim and Nasheed are all from government-aligned Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP). The supposed reason for their defection, as reported in local media, was a clash within the party’s parliamentary group over its stand on recently scheduled no-confidence motion against Home Minister Mohamed Jameel Ahmed.

A source in the MDP familiar with the matter alleged to Minivan News that the defection of the MPs was prompted after DRP Leader MP Ahmed Thasmeen Ali brokered a “last minute deal” with the government in return for DRP not voting against the minister.

According to a 2010 report by former Auditor General Ibrahim Naeem, loans totalling Rf1 billion taken out by Fonadhoo Tuna, a company owned by Thasmeen at the time, and luxury yachting company Sultans of the Sea, connected to the party leader, had yet to see any repayments.

Together the loans accounted for 13 per cent of the total amount loaned by the bank in 2008. Naeem commented at the time that defaults on bank loans issued to “influential political players” could jeopardise the entire financial system of the country.

DRP MPs Mohamed Nashiz and Ali Azim were summoned to court in November 2012 regarding the debts, just as parliament was voting to determine whether no-confidence motions against ministers could be taken in secret.

Those summons were in relation to a Civil Court ordering Mahandhoo Investments and Kabalifaru Investments – two companies with ties to DRP Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali – to repay millions of dollars worth of loans to the Bank of Maldives Plc Ltd (BML). The verdict was also upheld by the High Court in October 2011.

MP Azim alleged at the time that President Mohamed Waheed Hassan and other senior members of the executive had approached him, offering to cancel the court summons if he agreed to vote for the secret balloting in a way they preferred.

According to the MDP source, ahead of the no-confidence motion on April 8 the DRP had “in principle agreed” to vote against the minister, but had changed their minds at the last minute. Speaker Abdulla Shahid was “left no choice but to call off the session”.

Shahid called off the parliamentary session following point of orders taken by opposition MDP MPs over the issue of the secret ballot, which the Supreme Court had overturned despite parliament’s earlier vote in favour.

Upon concluding the session Speaker Shahid announced that the matter raised by MDP MPs regarding Supreme Court’s decision had been sent to parliament’s General Affairs Committee. He said the committee will review the decision and begin working the following day.

Despite the rumours, the DRP MPs have been in no hurry to confirm the reported switch.

Speaking to Minivan News, MDP Spokesperson MP Hamid Abdul Ghafoor claimed that “a re-alignment in favour of the opposition is definitely happening”.

“I can confirm you as I am a parliamentarian myself that several parliamentary groupings who previously stood behind the old dictatorship are slowly dismantling now. They have now started to realise that backing an old dictatorship is wrong,” said Ghafoor. “I can guarantee you that a re-alignment is definitely happening and dismantling of the old dictatorship is imminent.”

However Ghafoor declined to reveal the names of those MPs involved in the claimed switch.

Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) Deputy Leader Ibrahim Shareef said the party had received no official confirmation that Speaker Shahid or any of the party’s MPs had resigned from the party or were  looking to switch to the MDP.

However, Shareef said he could not rule out the possibility of such a switch in the current political climate, citing that political defections “occur very fast in this country”.

“Anything is possible” he admitted. “As far as we are concerned, there are a lot of rumors right now about a political switch.”

Should the defections happen as rumored, the number of opposition MDP MPs will be 35 – just 4 MPs short of the parliament’s simple majority required for the dismissal of cabinet ministers and pushing through legislation.

Parliament breakdown by party (prior to rumoured defection of five DRP MPs):
MDP 29
PPM 19
DRP 11
JP 3
PA 1
DQP 1
Independent – 11
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Nasheed predicts first round win with 57 percent of popular vote

Former President Mohamed Nasheed has publicly predicted that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) will win the presidential elections on September 7 with 57 percent of the popular vote – six percent more than the required 51 percent to secure election victory without a run-off election.

In 2008, Nasheed was sworn in as the fourth president of the country after a run-off election against his predecessor Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who had been in power for 30 years and was Asia’s longest serving leader at the time.

Nasheed’s predictions of securing a first round election victory were dismissed as “meaningless political rhetoric” by the government-aligned Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP).

DRP Deputy Leader Ibrahim Shareef told Minivan News he did not believe there was a single party in the country capable of securing an outright win in September.  He suggested that neither former President Nasheed or Maumoon Abdul Gayoom could achieve more than a 25 per cent  share of the total vote with their respective parties.

Shareef added that despite recent comments by Nasheed, the former president was aware of the “ground realities” of the country’s politics.

“The Maldives is a very small country.  We have seen that since the introduction of political parties, the whole population is more fragmented and polarised,” he said.  “We are in a transitional stage right now where independent institutions are weak and political parties are often poorly organised.”

Shareef contended that there was seemingly very little difference in terms of belief or ideology between political parties.

“All parties have similar views, the only difference is that they seek to be the governing party,” he added.

Considering the share of national vote secured by Nasheed in the first round of the 2008 Presidential election, which eventually led to a run-off where he secured his presidency through a coalition, Shareef said he believed very little had changed in regards to his popularity nationally.

He claimed therefore that even considering the superior funding available to the Nasheed-led Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and the Gayoom-founded PPM, no candidate could secure more than a 25 percent vote.

PPM MP and spokesperson Ahmed Mahloof was not responding to calls at time of press.

Run-off victory

During the first round of the elections no candidate out of the six, including Nasheed and Gayoom, were able to secure the required 51 percent. President Gayoom came closest to the mark with 40.34 percent of the vote while Nasheed trailed in the second position with 24.91 percent of the popular vote, resulting in a run-off election.

However Nasheed, backed by the remaining candidates with the exception of Umar Naseer who later went on to become a strong Gayoom supporter – won the election in the second round beating Gayoom with 53.65 percent to 45.32 percent of the popular vote.

Nasheed, who resigned under controversial circumstances on February 7, 2012, made his prediction during a campaign rally on Hithadhoo in Laamu Atoll, during which he declared that the Elections Commission should not worry about the possibility of a run-off election.

“We will not need to go for a second round. Tune onto your radios, subscribe for cable TV and pay your cable bills, for this picture by the will of God, is being witnessed throughout the country. Hithadhoo island, Laamu Atoll and the whole country including its atolls, islands and the capital Male’ are calling for us, the MDP. They want our policies to be implemented,” he claimed.

“Candidate number one, Mohamed Nasheed of Galolhu ward Keneryge will win this election with 121,000 votes in the first round,” Nasheed declared.

Nasheed also repeated his call that no party should intend to join forces with his party if their motive for such an alignment involved a desire for wealth and political influence.

During a previous rally, Nasheed claimed that leaders of many political parties had learned “bitter lessons” over the inability to run a government by sharing cabinet positions among different parties over the last four years.

“A cabinet in which one minister belongs to this party and another belongs to that party, cannot run a government,” Nasheed claimed.

During the Laamu Atoll rally on Monday, Nasheed argued that the world was moving towards two major political ideologies and questioned the need for 13 political parties in the Maldives.

Referring to Aasandha – the Nasheed government’s universal health insurance scheme that was established in a public-private partnership with Allied Insurance – the former president claimed his the scheme had ensured social protection and the general well being of the people, despite several challenges and hardships faced during its implementation.

He warned that should the scheme collapse, the country would return to a tradition where ordinary people were required to beg at the knees of a handful of “elites” in the country.

Following controversial succession of power after Nasheed, current President Mohamed Waheed Hassan’s administration claimed the Aasandha scheme is no longer financially tenable due to unsustainable demand with the scheme’s current rate of expenditure threatened to reach Rf1 billion (US$64.8 million) on an approved budget of Rf720 million (US$46.6 million).

The incoming Chairman of the National Social Protection Agency (NSPA) and State Minister of Home Affairs Thoriq Ali Luthfee at the time claimed that the Aasandha scheme “cannot continue to operate without interventions to control the demand” alleging that the scheme was introduced “for political motives” without any proper planning.

Nasheed had at the time condemned the move citing and dismissed the government’s claim of lack of funds for Aasandha as “unacceptable.”

“More than Rf 150 million (US$10 million) has been spent on police promotions. Another Rf 150 million (US$10 million) has been spent giving MNDF [Maldives National Defense Force] officers two years of allowances in a lump sum. Another Rf 50 million (US$3.3 million) has been spent repairing the damage to police headquarters. It was the police officers who staged the coup who vandalised the place and threw chairs and computers from the building’s windows. When this money has been wasted, we cannot accept it when they say there is no money for Aasandha,” Nasheed said at the time.

The question of Nasheed’s ability to contest in the presidential elections still remains unanswered. The Prosecutor General has charged him under section 81 of the Penal Code with the offence of arresting an innocent person for his controversial detention of Chief Judge of Criminal Court during the last days of his presidency – if convicted, he could be barred from contesting the election.

The trial is currently suspended following an appeal by Nasheed’s legal team contesting the legitimacy of Judicial Service Commission (JSC)’s appointment of the panel of judges to preside on the hearing.

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Parliament postpones no-confidence votes against Home, Defence Minister over issue of secret ballot

Parliament called off scheduled no-confidence votes set to be taken today (April 8 ) against Home Minister Mohamed Jameel and Defense Minister Mohamed Nazim, after Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MPs objected to the vote not being made in secret despite a parliamentary decision otherwise.

The Supreme Court in March struck down the amendment to parliament’s standing orders that allowed no-confidence votes to be made through secret ballot, declaring the amendment unconstitutional. The majority opinion of the Supreme Court contended that the move contravened article 85 of the constitution as well as parliamentary principles and the norms of free and democratic societies.

During today’s parliament session, Deputy Parliamentary Group Leader of MDP, MP Ali Waheed, contended that the Supreme Court’s ruling itself had been unconstitutional as it had exceeded its own mandate as under the constitution parliament is deemed a separate power of the state – which the Supreme Court does not have the jurisdiction to meddle with.

Waheed also warned that the MDP would not allow the speaker to go forward with the vote without making it a secret ballot.

Several other opposition MPs argued that government-aligned Dhivehi Rayithunge Party (DRP) was prepared to vote with the opposition should the ballot be a secret ballot, giving the vote the 39 MP majority needed for it to pass.

However, Deputy Parliamentary Group Leader of DRP MP Abdulla Mausoom denied the claim stating that the party’s stand was to abstain from the vote.

Mausoom told local media outlet Sun Online that the party had come to the decision in an attempt to prioritise national interest ahead of party politics and to prevent chaos and confusion among the public.

During the debate on the vote, members of the government-aligned Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) spoke in favour of both Jameel and Nazim claiming that the vote was a tactic employed by the opposition to intimidate and harass the ministers.

Speaking during the debate, former Interim Deputy Leader of PPM, MP Abdul Raheem Abdulla said that Jameel a remarkable background and was one of the most educated and able ministers in the current government.

He also said that PPM was defending the Minister not because the party felt that the government of President Mohamed Waheed Hassan was doing any good, but because PPM MPs loved the nation and its well being.

Raheem Abdulla also applauded the minister for his “remarkable reforms” brought to the police institution, claiming that the police force “was a mess” during former President Mohamed Nasheed’s administration.

Speaking in the debate, MP Ali Waheed questioned the Home Minister as to why the police were excessively spending public funds on fireworks and celebrations when the country’s largest hospital IGMH did not even have enough doctors.

Meanwhile Independent MP Alhan Fahmy stated that although he did not question Jameel’s academic qualifications, he argued that the minister had failed in executing his duties and accused him of being negligent in looking into police misconduct.

Responding to the allegations levied against him, Jameel told parliament that the no-confidence motion filed against him by the MDP MPs lacked any basis.

Jameel, former Justice Minister during President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s administration, claimed that allegations against him were “misleading and politicised” and that the motion was put forth to achieve “political leverage”.

“When I took over as the Minister, the whole police institution was in a mess. I cannot fix everything in a year. Under my leadership, the role of the police has been expanded throughout the country. Demonstrations can now be held anywhere in the country peacefully,” he said.

Jameel also contended that police are now more professional and do not discriminate when executing their duties and responsibilities.

Order in the chamber was lost halfway through the morning session after Defence Minister Mohamed Nazim entered the parliament floor wearing his military colours.

Opposition MDP MP Mohamed ‘Kubey’ Rasheed took a point of order contending the parliamentary regulation did not allow Defense Minister – who was accompanied by his lawyer and the Deputy Attorney General – to enter the parliament floor with military colours.

Several other MPs also joined Rasheed in protest and the session had to be suspended for few hours.

Before the break, MPs decided to hold the debate on Defence Minister’s impeachment behind closed doors.

The parliament session reconvened at 1:00pm and when Speaker Abdulla Shahid called for the vote, MDP MPs began protesting, claiming that the vote should be a secret ballot.

After several failed attempts by the Speaker to calm the MPs, the session was cancelled. Speaker Shahid also announced that the matter raised by MDP MPs regarding Supreme Court’s decision had been sent to parliament’s General Affairs Committee.

Speaker Shahid stated that the committee with review the decision and will begin its work on Tuesday.

In October last year, the MDP submitted its first motion against Home Minister Jameel over concerns from the party of what it called an “unprecedented” increase in murders and assault in the Maldives since the transfer of power.

Despite the MDP withdrawing the no-confidence motion against the home minister a month later in November for an unexplained reason, a second no-confidence vote was submitted by the party in December.

A statement issued by the MDP accused Jameel of failing to control civil peace and order in the country, which it said had led to the loss of eight lives.

The MDP further referred to an incident in which a man on a motorcycle was killed after a police officer struck a second motorcyclist with his baton, causing him to collide with the first.

The MDP alleged that Home Minister Jameel had tried to cover up police involvement in the death.

A no-confidence vote was also due to be taken against Jumhoree Party MP and resort tycoon Gasim Ibrahim’s position on the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), which has come under fire internationally amid questions over its conduct and impartiality.

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Hoax photo of Nasheed meeting Artur Brothers circulated by State Defence Minister turns into meme

A photograph widely distributed by local media outlets depicting former President Mohamed Nasheed and his Special Envoy Ibrahim Hussain Zaki meeting the infamous Armenian ‘Artur Brothers’ has turned out to be a hoax.

The Armenian brothers – linked with drug trafficking, money laundering, raids on media outlets and other serious crimes in Kenya – were recently photographed with current Minster of Tourism Ahmed Adheeb and Defence Minister Ahmed Nazim during the Piston Motor Racing Challenge, organised by the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF).

The two ministers initially denied any involvement with the brothers or their apparent business interests in the Maldives, however a letter from the Tourism Ministry to immigration authorities requesting a residency visa for Margaryan and Sargsyan Artur, dated January 27 and signed by Adheeb, was subsequently leaked on social media.

Zaidul Khaleel, General Manager of the Club Faru resort which is operated by the state-owned Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC),  has also reportedly been sacked after he was found to have paid the brothers’ US$6000 bill.

Meanwhile, on Sunday a photo depicting former President Nasheed and Special Envoy and former SAARC Secretary General Ibrahim Hussain Zaki apparently meeting Artur Sargsyan was leaked on social media and widely republished by local media.

Local media outlet Channel News Maldives (CNM) reported that the photograph was originally leaked by the former Immigration Controller and current State Minister for Defence, Ilyas Hussain.

However the photograph turned out to be an edited photo taken during a formal reception for US Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg, held at the former Presidential residence of Muleaage in January 2011, with Sargsyan Artur’s head carefully photo-shopped onto Steinberg.

According to CNM, Ilyas at the time confirmed to the media outlet that the photo of Nasheed with Artur Sargsyan was real and authentic.

Speaking to Minivan News, Ilyas Hussain stated that he no longer wished to comment on the matter.

Following the publication of the leaked photo, a member of President Waheed’s Gaumee Ithihaad Party (GIP) told Minivan News that Waheed had prepared a press conference following the release of the edited photo, but later called it off after the photo was discovered to be a hoax.

Minivan News was unable to confirm the claim as President’s Office Spokesperson Masood Imad was not responding at time of press.

The photo has since gone viral across Maldivian social media and has been widely photoshopped to depict Nasheed meeting a wide variety of celebrities and fictional characters.

The meme has blossomed to include Nasheed encountering deceased Chairman of Apple Inc, Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Justin Beiber, Professional Wrestler/Rapper/Actor John Cena, the Pope, popular antagonist of the Star Wars franchise Darth Vader, fictional lead character in the Sacha Baron Cohen comedy ‘Dictator’ Admiral General Haffaz Aladeen, DC Comics superhero Batman, Rowan Atkinson’s UK comedy icon Mr Bean, and ‘Big Bird’ from US children’s television show Sesame Street.

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