Day: November 2, 2014

Finance Minister sends 2015 estimated budget to parliament for approval

Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad has sent the 2015 projected  annual state budget to the People’s Majlis for approval.

While speaking to local media outlet Sun Online, Jihad said that the budget was sent to the parliament last Thursday and that it would be higher than the budget for the year 2013.

The estimated budget for the current year was set at a record MVR 19.95 billion (US$ 1.16 billion). At the time the budget deficit stood at MVR 1.3 billion (US$ 84.3 million).

Jihad revealed in August that the government’s spiralling deficit could leave it unable to pay the salaries of civil servants.

The World Bank warned the government in late 2013 that it was spending well beyond its means noting that some of the biggest expenses were high civil service wages bill, healthcare, and electricity subsidies and transfers to state owned enterprises.

A report released by the World Bank stated that the budget deficit at the time at 81 percent of the GDP was unsustainable and predicted that the deficit could rise to about 96 percent by the year 2015.

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MCC laying pipes to prevent further flooding

Malé City Council (MCC) began laying underground pipes in the capital to prevent the persisent flooding of certain areas of the capital during rain showers.

Malé City Deputy Mayor Shifa Mohamed told Minivan News that the pipes are being laid with assistance from Malé Water and Sewerage Company (MWSC) at the areas worst affected by floods during bad weather.

“This is not permanent solution, but we believe that the pipes which are being laid underground will temporarily prevent severe flooding,” said Shifa.

Many major roads in the capital were severely flooded last Thursday (October 30) after a heavy downpour, disrupting transportation with much of the south-west of the 6km sq island left under water – a foot high in many places.

Shifa blamed poor planning and lack of maintenance as the lead cause in the flooding while stating that the drains on the sides of the roads have not been emptied in over 25 years.

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China gifts medical equipment worth MVR500,000

The Chinese embassy has provided medical equipment worth MVR500,000 (US$32,425) to the Hithadhoo regional hospital in Addu City and a US$20,000 grant to the health ministry.

Deputy Head of the Chinese Embassy Lu Kang handed over the equipment to Acting Health Minister Mohamed Nazim at a ceremony this morning at Nasandhuraa Palace Hotel.

The equipment included an incubator, oxygen concentrator, cardiac monitor, ventilator, and infusion warmer.

In his remarks at the ceremony, Nazim said the Chinese government’s assistance would help the government’s efforts to upgrade the regional hospital to tertiary level.

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Former environment minister presents scientific paper at Copenhagen conference

Former Environment Minister Mohamed Aslam has presented a scientific paper at the ‘Impact 2C’ conference in Copenhagen, Denmark about changes caused to island size by climate change.

According to a press statement from the office of former President Mohamed Nasheed on October 30, Aslam studied changes in size and sea level for 184 islands in Huvadhoo atoll (Gaaf Alif and Gaaf Dhaal atolls) from 1969 to 2013.

Aslam found that 43 percent of islands underwent significant changes. While 50 percent shrank in size, 23 percent grew and 27 remained unchanged.

Natural defences of the coral islands in the Maldives were changing due to climate change, Aslam concluded.

Former President Nasheed meanwhile stressed the importance of Maldivians participating in climate change discussions, forums and research projects.

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Future of Gulhifalhu in doubt as government halts project

Additional reporting by Ismail Humaam Hamed

The future of the Gulhifalhu development project appears uncertain as the government called a halt to proceedings, being said to have deemed the island unfit for habitation.

A buyer’s association – comprising seven families who made down payments on flats four years ago – now fear their investment may be lost.

“We are not big businessmen. We are simple people who gave up all our life savings because we wanted accommodation near the capital Malé,” said the association’s representative Adam Nadeem.

After paying the 30 percent – or MVR500,000 – of the cost of each flat in 2010, with a promise of a new home in 6 months, buyers were informed last week that the government had suspended further development, he explained.

Global Project Developments (GPD) have today said that the plan to build housing units was formulated upon the request of the state-owned Gulhifalhu Investments Ltd (GIL) and that all necessary permits were obtained in 2011.

“GPD believes that if there are any issues which would affect the livelihood of habitants of the island it is the responsibility of the government and GIL to address those issues,” read a press release from GPD.

GPD – a subsidiary of the UK company Capital Investment and Finance Ltd (CIFL) – went on to accuse GIL of failing to uphold its part of the agreement in registering the houses with the relevant authorities.

The project to develop the submerged reef situated between the islands of Villingili and Thilafushi – just minutes from the capital Malé – was signed in 2007 under the government of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

Investment plans

Initially envisioned as an industrial project, the development was amended after the arrival of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) administration, taking on the title of the Global Green City, and focusing on housing units to ease congestion in the capital city.

CIFL, having signed a 35-year lease agreement with the state-owned GIL, then established GPD in order to continue the reclamation and development of the island.

After the completion of the first housing units last month, however, the cabinet’s Economic Council informed GIL that the island was not fit for habitation due to health and geological factors, reported local media.

The island is located just 200 yards from Thilafushi – often referred to as a ‘toxic bomb’ owing to the fumes produced as much of the nation’s waste is burned on site.

Despite this, the Environmental Protection Agency had issued approval for the construction of 240 two-bedroom flats in November 2011.

Neither GPD nor the buyers association have been provided a copy of the GIL statement. Officials from the President’s Office were unavailable for comment at the time of publication.

Nadeem explained that meetings with the President’s Office and the Economic Council last December had been positive, with no sign that the future of the development was in danger.

Indeed, the Maldives’ first amusement park opened on the island the same month, with locals now visiting from the neighbouring islands every weekend. Additionally, two beach villas are available for visitors wishing to stay overnight.

Investor confidence

The disruption to the Gulhifalhu project is the latest in a series of foreign investor agreements that have faced difficulties after a change of government.

The Tatva waste management project became the latest deal signed under the MDP government to founder last month, with the government announcing that it wished to use a state-owned company to provide such services in the capital.

Deals for both border control and – most notably – airport development were also terminated by the government of Dr Mohamed Waheed, while the Tata housing project in Malé was delayed for two years as the incoming administration sought revised terms.

Assuming power in November 2013, the government of President Abdulla Yameen has sought to rebuild investor confidence, making the introduction of special economic zones (SEZ) the cornerstone of its economic policy.

The fostering of an investor friendly environment is intended to facilitate the development of a number of ‘mega projects’ which the administration hopes will move the economy away from its current dependence on tourism.

The SEZ bill was passed in September, and China has signed a preliminary contract agreement on the development of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport as well as promising to “favorably consider” financing the bridge project.

Proposed projects in the Malé region include the continued development of Hulhumalé to house the capital’s overflowing population, the construction of the Malé-Hulhulé bridge, and the relocation of the country’s main port from Malé to Thilafushi.

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Almost half of civil servants earn less than MVR5,000 a month

Almost half of the country’s civil servants earn a monthly salary of less than MVR5,000 (US$324), statistics from the Civil Service Commission (CSC) have revealed.

While the number of government employees who earn up to MVR4,499 a month increased from 9,914 in May to 11,000 in September, the number of employees who earn between MVR5,000 and MVR10,000 (US$ 648) decreased from 14,380 in May to 13,580 in September.

Those earning between MVR10,000 and MVR15,000 (US$972) increased by 30 percent in September while those who earn higher than MVR15,000 rose by 96 percent.

Speaking at a three-day conference organised jointly by the CSC, Anti-Corruption Commission, and the Auditor General’s Office last week, Defence Minister Colonel (Retired) Mohamed Nazim criticised civil servants for providing “poor service” to the public.

Most civil servants have poor attendance records, arrive at work late, do careless work, and take leave or holidays excessively, Nazim said, which were “unacceptable.”

Recent statistics from the CSC showed that civil servants rose from 24,742 in May to 25,010 in September – representing over seven percent of the population.

Female civil servants outnumber males, with 13,280 women and 11,730 men, while 35 percent of government workers are based in the capital Malé.

The highest number of civil servants work under the Ministry of Education (9,955), followed by the Ministry of Health (7,090) and local councils (4,454).

Nazim suggested that the “only solution” to the shortcomings of the civil service was bringing amendments to relevant laws in order to ensure employees could not take leave for four or five months a year.

Aside from pay rises and promotions, Nazim said employees could also be motivated to work better as a team, advising reforms to rules for promotions to provide incentives to civil servants.

Reviewing the organisational structure of offices could also improve efficiency, he added.

“I would like to believe that employees of the civil service can get the public’s love and respect when they work for it,” he said.

Addressing foreign participants of the conference in English, Nazim said the “key role of the civil service is to provide public service in an efficient and empathetic manner.”

With democracy in the Maldives “in its infancy,” Nazim said the country was facing “multi-faceted” and “increasingly complex” challenges and stressed the importance of reforming the civil service.

He urged participants of the conference to consider “the geographical nature of the Maldivian archipelago and the nature of service we have provided while addressing the challenges and reforming the civil service structure.”

According to the CSC, the purpose of the conference was improving the service offered to the public and focused on three main themes.

“They were organisational development and review, human resource management and development, and establishing a civil service with integrity,” the CSC explained in a press statement.

Former chairman of India’s Union Public Service Commission Professor Dev Prakash also took part in the conference, delivering  the keynote speech.

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MDN urges the police to speed up investigations of death threats against journalists

The Maldivian Democracy Network (MDN) has urged the Maldives Police Service (MPS) to speed up its investigations into the many death threats made to journalists and to ensure their adequate protection.

In a press statement released on the occasion of UNESCO’s International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists, MDN also expressed its concern over the prevalence of aggressive threats made against journalists.

“Journalists in Maldives continue to receive death threats and other violent messages, some in the public domain through social media. They have been targeted with grave physical harm. It is appalling that these incidents should go without investigation and apprehension of perpetrators,” read the MDN statement.

MDN also voiced their concern over the disappearance of Minivan News journalist Ahmed Rilwan who has been missing for 87 days as of today (November 2).

“There has been no progress in finding Rilwan, and allegations of impunity have risen with every passing day,” said MDN.

Rilwan’s disappearance is the first such instance of its kind in the Maldives, although near fatal attacks were carried out on the blogger Ismail Hilath Rasheed in 2012 and the Raajje TV reporter Ibrahim ‘Asward’ Waheed in 2013.

Adopted by a resolution in the UN General Assembly last year, the day is used to urge member states to implement definite measures countering the present culture of impunity.

November 2 was chosen to commemorate to two French journalists killed in Mali on 2 November 2013. UNESCO reports that over 700 journalists have been killed in the last decade, with 2012 and 2013 representing the deadliest years.

Following Rilwan’s disappearance in August, journalists from across the Maldives joined to declare that his abduction was a threat to all, and calling for an end to persistent intimidation faced by the press.

“As intimidation of press grows, and attacks against journalists, equipment, and buildings continue, we are extremely concerned over the delays in bringing to justice those who commit these acts,” read the landmark statement.

Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon also expressed concern regarding acts of intimidation and reprisals to journalists in general, noting that “freedom of media facilities a greater degree of interconnectedness and awareness in the community, and is the cornerstone of any democratic society”.

Last week, the People’s Majilis threw out a 5055 strong petition urging the parliament’s National Security Committee to pressure the Maldives Police Services to conduct a speedy and thorough investigation.

Rilwan’s family also lodged a formal complaint with the Police Integrity Commission accusing the police of negligence in the investigation into the 28-year-old’s disappearance.

Meanwhile, a media official from MPS told Minivan News today that that investigation into Rilwan’s disappearance is going ahead speedily but reported no new updates to the investigation

The media official also mentioned that police security was provided for two journalists after two convicts who were serving life sentences for murder escaped the Maafushi high security  prison in October.

A total of four men have been arrested over Rilwan’s disappearance, although only one man remains in custody at present.

Home Minister Umar Naseer said he believed Rilwan to be alive and promised to return him safe to his family. He has also acknowledged the involvement of criminal gangs in the case.

Last month, MDN released the findings of a private investigation, which discounted theories of voluntary disappearance and suicide, concluding that the disappearance was most likely an abduction by radicalised gangs.

On September 25, a named suspect in the MDN private investigation broke a CCTV outside Minivan News building before two men on motorbikes lodged a machete to the door.

Police arrested the renowned gangster who was caught on footage when he broke the camera only to be released the next day by the Criminal Court demanding the man to cooperate with the investigation and not to cause any further disturbances.

MPS also provided Minivan News with static security outside the building after the attack with one Minivan News journalist receiving death threats in the hours following the attack.

Recently, Amnesty International demanded police intensify their efforts to find those responsible for the numerous death threats and violent attacks against journalists.

Numerous international organisations have criticised the slow progress in the investigation of the case including Reporters without Borders and the International Federation of Journalists.

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Two men stabbed in café

Two men were stabbed in a café in Malé around 6:30am this morning by a group of men on motorbikes.

Eyewitnesses told local media that the assailants fled on motorbikes after stabbing the victims inside the K Mart café in the Henveiru ward of the capital.

Both victims were taken to the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital for treatment of injuries.

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