Category: News in Brief

Supreme Court invalidates two local council candidates

The Supreme Court has invalidated the candidacy of local council candidates Aseeth Thuafee, competing for Himandhoo in Alif Alif Atoll (as MDP), and Abdul Bari, who competed for Bodufolhudhoo in Alif Alif Atoll (as an independent).

Haveeru reported that Aseeth was invalidated because of a conviction for stealing an outboard motor, a crime for which he was sentenced to banishment for 13 months (unserved).

Bari had been convicted in 1994 for “treachery” of Rf 20,000, Haveeru reported.

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Eco film festival concludes in Male’

An environment-themed film festival was concluded yesterday after screening three days worth of films and documentaries from around the world for local audiences in Male’.

The Safe Planet Film Festival was held in collaboration between a number of parties including the Ministry of Housing and Environment and Indian environmental NGO Terre Policy. the festival showcased a number of films concerning environmental issues ranging in length from 30 second shorts to hour-long documentaries at the capital’s Olympus Theatre.

Other event organisers included the High Commission of India, the Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation (MNBC) and the Maldives Entertainment Company.

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Maldives inaugurates Italian university outpost

The Italy-based University of Milano-Bococca has inaugurated an outpost specialising in marine research in Magoodhoo, Faafu Atoll.

The site, which was opened yesterday by President Mohamed Nasheed, is said to reflect government aims to offer wider educational opportunities for pupils and students in the country.

Speaking at the launch, Nasheed claimed that beyond opening up opportunities for international students to study marine life in one of the world’s “most spectacular tropical ecosystems”, the outpost would also allow Maldivian students to benefit from international-standard educational facilities without leaving the country.

The University of Milano-Bicocca was established back in 1998 and offers students a number of courses ranging from disciplines such as economics and sociology to mathematics, physics and natural sciences.

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Dutch Docklands unveils floating development plans

Floating properties are to be developed on Five lagoons within the Kaafu Atoll that will include a convention centre and an 18-hole golf course as part of a joint venture agreement between the government and Netherlands-based developer, Dutch Docklands.

As part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with the government last year, the developer has now established a joint venture company known as Dutch Docklands Maldives that will hope to gather additional investment of about US$500m into the country, Haveeru has reported.

The Maldives government will hold a five percent share in the joint venture, which is expected to begin work on the five floating developments this year with a projected completion date of 2015, the report added.

During a signing ceremony held at the Ministry of Toruism, Arts and Culture on Thursday, Dutch Docklands claimed that the five developments would require the adoption of a number of new technologies such as renewable energy projects in the country.

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MAPS promotes itself to a college and commences academic year

The Modern Academy for Professional Studies (MAPS) institute has promoted itself to college status this week and commenced the academic year.

The college has introduced new courses in the field of accounting and said it was scheduled to introduce further areas of study later this year.

MAPS college claimed that it was looking forward to introducing degree-level courses in the future and added that it was currently seeking for affiliates from the UK and Australia in order to achieve its goal to teach such programmes.

The college currently offers management courses in Travel and Tourism, Human Resources, Business and IT to the level of Diploma and Advance Diploma.

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British High Commission raises concerns over “UK” lottery and job scams

The British High Commission (BHC) in Colombo is warning Maldivian and Sri Lankan nationals to protect themselves against scam e-mails that claim to offer UK-based lottery jackpots and job positions, which it has said have already stung a large number of people from around the region.

Citing an anecdotal increase in the number of scam e-mails worldwide, the BHC has said that it “regularly” receives enquiries from Maldivians and Sri Lankans concerning unsolicited lottery winnings and job offers promising “good” things for recipients that respond.

“The sad truth is that many people are being cheated with job offers and lotteries that do not exist,” the commission stated. “Statistics show almost three million people fall victim to scams annually, losing an average of £850 (Rf17,000) each and sometimes a great deal more.”

According to the commission, genuine UK lotteries are not allowed to be entered by individuals living outside of the country, either by expatriates or foreign nationals.

The release added that legitimate competitions do not inform people via e-mail that they have successfully won jackpots and that all such competitions are required to be registered in the UK as well as having their own websites.

In terms of job offers, the commission stressed that similar precautions should be taken in regards to e-mails offering work in the UK, where companies normally require a recruitment procedure including a face-to-face interview with successful applicants before appointing a position.

The BHC claimed that the UK government, including its trade and investment divisions, do not send out unsolicited e-mails with job offers directly or through employment agencies. Genuine job positions within the government are offered on official websites.

However, any individual with doubts concerning the authenticity of e-mail offers can look up genuine UK companies that are required to be registered at www.companieshouse.gov.uk, while the addresses of businesses operating in the country can be checked at www.upmystreet.com.uk, the commission said.

“If you have been cheated because of a job or lottery scam, we advise you to report it to the Sri Lankan police authorities,” the BHC stated. “The UK government has no jurisdiction to investigate or take out criminal prosecutions in Sri Lanka. Moreover, the BHC cannot speak on behalf of any company or individual sending e-mails, be they spam or otherwise, unless it concerns [the commission] directly.”

Further information on detecting possible scam correspondence can be found here.

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Backup generators fail at IGMH during power outage

Backup generators at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) failed early on Tuesday morning, after a power outage in Male’ left the hospital without electricity.

A person who was at he hospital at the time told Haveeru that IGMH was in pitch darkness when the blackout occurred at 1:30am, with even staff in the intensive care unit forced to use torches.

“They did not turn on the backup system after the power outage. The whole ICU was full. People were very upset,” the witness told the paper.

Male Health Services Corporation (MHSC) Media Coordinator Zeenath Ali told Haveeru that the power was restored after 15 minutes and that no patients had been hurt.

A STELCO engineer said the power outage was due to an overheating generator.

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Five percent voter turnout expected in Colombo for upcoming elections

Only 400 of the 8000 Maldivians living in Sri Lanka – five percent – have registered to vote in the local council elections, reports Haveeru, citing sources from the Maldives High Commission in Colombo.

Haveeru quoted a Maldivian businessman living in Sri Lanka as saying that despite email campaigns circulated by the parties to try and breach the apathy, “the main reason for Maldivians in Sri Lanka not being interested in registering themselves to vote is mainly due to lack of awareness or enthusiasm.”

Maldivians based in Sri Lanka were required to register to vote before January 5, a month ahead of the election which will see 2830 candidates competing for 1091 council seats.

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Civil Court rejects second case against JSC’s High Court appointments

The Civil Court has rejected a second case filed by a judge opposing the Judicial Services Commission (JSC)’s appointment of High Court’s judges, reports Haveeru.

Chief judge of the Family Court Hassan Saeed filed a case in the Civil Court calling for the JSC’s appointments to be invalidated.

Last week Criminal Court judge Abdul Bari Yousuf, one of the unsuccessful applicants to the High Court bench, filed a similar case that was accepted by the court – however it was blocked from hearing the matter by the Supreme Court, which issued an unprecedented Writ of Prohibition and requested the case file.

High Court judges appointment by the JSC last week include Juvenile Court Chief Judge Shuaib Hussein Zakariya, former Law Commission member Dr Azmiralda Zahir, Civil Court registrar Abdu Rauf Ibrahim, lawyer of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Abbas Shareef and Civil Court Chief Judge Ali Sameer.

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