Day: December 1, 2014

New civil service act comes into effect

New civil service regulations come into effect today (December 1), replacing the 2010 Civil Regulations Act.

A Civil Service Commission press statement today read that the new regulations were formulated after consulting various stakeholders including the public, civil service staff, and different government authorities.

It also said that the new regulations are aimed at delivering a more efficient service to the public by making civil service employees more responsible, as well as ensuring the rights of the workers.

The CSC is also running programmes and workshops along with government officials to raise awareness amongst civil service staff of the the new regulations.

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.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Tax rate on domestic air travel for locals reduced to 6 percent

Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) will be charging the normal 6 percent tax on domestic travel instead of the 12 percent, aimed at tourists, from today.

A MIRA press statement read that the amendments to the 2011 tax act would come into effect starting December 1.  The amendment makes no changes to the requirement of foreign workers in the country to pay 12 percent T-GST on the domestic air travel.

According to the changes, employees would also be charged only 6 percent GST at staff shops in resorts, following changes to the law made in the Majlis last month.

Previously, former President Mohamed Nasheed had made remarks about the hike in T-GST from 8 to 12 percent, noting that a flight to the south of Maldives had become more expensive than a flight to India or Sri Lanka as a result.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

New Hulhumalé school to open in 2015, national first grade intake to increase 11 percent

Education Minister Dr Aishath Shiham has said that the school under construction in Hulhumalé will open next year and that there will be an increase of 11 percent in the number of first graders nationwide.

While speaking at a press conference yesterday, Dr Aishath said that the number of students enrolling in first grade nationally is to be at 2,070, up from 1,950 students this year.

“This is a noteworthy increase. The number of students enrolling has also seen an increase with the population boom,” said Dr Aishath.

The preliminary results of the recently completed national census showed that the Maldivian population has grown by 14.1 percent since 2006.

The list of students enrolled in the primary schools in Malé can now be found on the ministry’s website and the respective schools.

The education ministry also recently announced that books and stationary will only be provided to parents who request for government assistance after submitting a form to the ministry. The ministry also discouraged schools from assigning a specific bookshop for the school when handing out vouchers to parents.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Pre-feasibility study MoU signed with Chinese government

The Maldives has signed an MoU with the Chinese government regarding a pre-feasibility study of the proposed Malé-Hulhulé bridge.

The agreement was signed by Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Dr Mohamed Muizz and Yung Wan Xion, principal of the Chinese Office of Economic and Commercial Affairs.  ­

Dr Muizz thanked the Chinese government for the generous support and said that the Maldives was giving utmost priority to the project in order to complete it.

In October, a Chinese team of engineers reportedly conducted a survey on the feasibility of the bridge while also researching the best pier points for the bridge, while Chinese government officials announced they would “favorably consider” financing the project.

Speaking to Haveeru at the time, tourism minister Ahmed Adeeb said the survey was to be finished in a period of four months, with costs being covered by  US$4 million in aid from the Chinese government.

Opposition Maldives Democratic Party of Maldives (MDP) has, however, criticised the government’s inclusion of high amounts of funds allotted for the bridge feasibility study in the upcoming three years.

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Parliament removes its requirement to authorise government loans

Parliament passed amendments to the Public Finance Act today reversing changes brought to the law in 2010 requiring parliamentary approval for obtaining loans, providing sovereign guarantees, and leasing or selling state assets.

During the final debate at today’s sitting of the People’s Majlis, opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said he believed the government should have “the power and discretion” to obtain loans and conduct its programmes.

However, the MDP parliamentary group leader objected to scrapping a provision in the public finance law that prohibits expenditures in excess of funds allocated in the annual budget.

If Article 34(b) is abolished, Solih said the finance minister would not have to ensure that spending was in line with the budget approved by parliament.

If MVR800 million (US$51.8 million) was allocated to the police, Solih explained that the finance minister could approve MVR1 billion (US$64.8 million) for the institution.

“The purpose of passing the budget would be completely lost if this article is abolished,” he said.

Following the debate, the government-sponsored amendments (Dhivehi) were passed with 41 votes in favour, 25 votes against, and one abstention.

While Jumhooree Party MP Hussain Mohamed proposed adding clauses to require the government to provide information concerning loans and financial assistance to parliament within 45 days, neither amendment passed after pro-government MPs voted against the proposals.

The MP for Mathiveri had argued that the current law would not hamper the daily functions of the government as a decision to take a loan or provide a sovereign guarantee would not be made “one morning at the office”.

On the issue of delays in securing parliamentary approval, Hussain noted that the economic affairs committee completed its review of the amendments in two and a half hours.

“So what is the delay here? [The amendments] will be passed today. It has probably been just a week since it was submitted,” he said, noting that pro-government MPs were in the majority.

He further urged pro-government MPs to read Majlis minutes from 2010 to see how then-opposition leaders spoke in favour of the amendments.

Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) MP Jameel Usman meanwhile said parliament unduly assuming executive powers would pose difficulties in providing services to the public.

“Our responsibility should not be stopping things but monitoring,” he said.

Restrictive

Last week, Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad told parliament’s economic affairs committee that the government faced serious difficulties due to the requirement to seek parliamentary approval before obtaining loans.

Similar requirements did not exist in any other country, he added.

Jihad referred to a loan obtained from the Bank of Maldives during President Dr Mohamed Waheed’s administration without parliamentary approval as Majlis was in recess at the time and the funds were needed to pay salaries of government employees.

In December 2013, the Auditor General’s Office revealed that President Waheed’s administration violated finance laws in securing a domestic loan worth MVR300 million (US$ 19.45 million) from the Bank of Maldives (BML) for budget support.

Meanwhile, in May, President Abdulla Yameen suggested that the requirements of the public finance law were hampering the functioning of the executive.

The government was forced to seek parliamentary approval “even for a MVR1,000 (US$65) loan,” he said.

Yameen contended that laws imposing “various restrictions” on the executive were passed by the previous People’s Majlis due to the “irresponsibility” of the former head of government.

The passage of the amendments in 2010 prompted the en masse resignation of former President Mohamed Nasheed’s cabinet on June 29, 2010 in protest of the opposition’s alleged obstruction and “scorched earth” policy.

While former Special Majlis MP Ibrahim Ismail ‘Ibra’ characterised the amendments as the “grand finale of decimating the executive,” the Nasheed administration filed a case at the Supreme Court contesting the constitutionality of some provisions.

Yameen, who was leader of the minority opposition People’s Alliance at the time, said Nasheed’s “selling off of state assets and giving up uninhabited islands” had prompted the opposition’s actions.

“When many such actions that were harmful to the public occurred, a group of people advocating as the people’s representatives – myself included – determined things that cannot be done without a say of the parliament and passed a law called the Public Finance Act to hold the government accountable,” he had said in May.

Following the controversial transfer of power in February 2012, the new administration – made up of former opposition parties – sought to reverse the restrictions concerning the sale and lease of state properties.


Related to this story

Finance Ministry’s MVR 300 million budget-support loan “illegal”

Cabinet resigns in protest over opposition MPs “scorched earth” politics

Government hampered by “restrictive” public finance law, says President Yameen

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

More than seven Maldivians fighting in foreign civil wars, reveals home minister

More than seven Maldivians are currently fighting in foreign civil wars, Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer revealed at the People’s Majlis today.

Responding to a query during minister’s question time from former police commissioner and Jumhooree Party MP Abdulla Riyaz about the ministry’s efforts to prevent Maldivians joining civil wars in foreign nations, Naseer said police were monitoring persons with extremist religious views.

“In such cases, persons attempting to leave abroad with the intention of joining civil wars have been stopped with court orders and prohibited from leaving,” he said.

“And the passports of some people have been withheld for a period determined by the court.”

Maldivian jihadis have also been brought back to the country with help from foreign law enforcement agencies, he added.

However, police faced difficulties in proving guilt at court of persons intending to join foreign civil wars, he continued, suggesting that the evidentiary standard should be lowered for terrorism cases.

Police were also working with the Islamic ministry to provide religious counselling and advice to discourage Maldivians from flying overseas to fight in civil wars, Naseer said.

Efforts were meanwhile underway to establish an efficient mechanism for taking action based on intelligence information, Naseer said.

While neighbouring countries provide assistance in returning Maldivians intending to travel for jihad, Naseer said the government was unable to bring back Maldivians who have made their way into Syria.

The government is studying a recently-approved UN security council resolution on foreign terrorist fighters, Naseer said, and would comply with obligations.

A strategic action plan is also being implemented to combat religious extremism, he added, which involved prevention of radical views in public schools.

Asked about efforts to prevent recruitment in the country, Naseer said the government has banned independent prayer congregations across the country.

Naseer denied claims by opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP ‘Reeko’ Moosa Manik that Maldivian students who went to Sudan through the Islamic ministry in 2012 are involved in violent conflicts.

He also denied MDP MP Abdul Bari Abdulla’s allegation that government ministers were involved in a “network” for recruiting Maldivian jihadis with help from foreign terrorist organisations.

Police intelligence officers were constantly monitoring alleged recruitment efforts, Naseer said, insisting that foreign terrorist organisations or religious extremists would not be able to interfere in domestic affairs.

“The number of Maldivians participating in foreign wars would be proportionately much lower than large European nations,” he said.

Islamic State

Last month, a jihadist media group called Bilad al-Sham – which describes itself as ‘Maldivians in Syria’ – revealed that a fifth Maldivian had died in Syria.

Earlier in the month, Sri Lankan police detained three Maldivians who were allegedly preparing to travel to Syria through Turkey.

The three – two men aged 23 and 25, and a woman aged 18 – were from the island of Madduvari in Raa atoll and were released from custody upon being brought back to the Maldives.

The incident followed reports of a couple from Fuvahmulah and a family of four from Meedhoo in Raa atoll traveling to militant organisation Islamic State-held (IS) territories to join the fighting in Syria and Iraq.

A UN report obtained by the UK’s Guardian newspaper earlier this month observed that foreign jihadists were now travelling to Syria and Iraq on “an unprecedented scale”.

The report mentioned the Maldives as one of the “unlikely” places from which IS supporters have emerged.

Meanwhile, a protest march took place in the capital, Malé, in September, with around 200 participants bearing the IS flag and calling for the implementation of Islamic Shariah in the Maldives.

In late August, Foreign Minister Dunya Maumoon issued a press statement condemning “the crimes committed against innocent civilians by the organisation which identifies itself as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant or the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.”

Dunya’s remarks followed Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed’s declaration that the ISIS would not be allowed to operate in the Maldives.

“ISIS is an extremist group. No space will be given for their ideology and activities in the Maldives,” Shaheem tweeted on August 24.

Shaheem had also appealed for Maldivians to refrain from participating in foreign wars and has recently defended the government’s record on extremism before the Majlis.

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), however, promptly put out a statement questioning Shaheem’s sincerity, suggesting that the words had not been backed up with concrete action by the government.

Former President Mohamed Nasheed has claimed that up to 200 Maldivians are on jihad, alleging that a vast majority of them are ex-military – a claim vehemently denied by the security services.

“Radical Islam is getting very very strong in the Maldives, their strength in the military and in the police is very significant. They have people in strategic positions within both,” Nasheed said in an interview with UK’s Independent newspaper.


Related to this story

Islamic minister defends government policy on extremism

Police detain Maldivian jihadis caught in Sri Lanka

Police arrest Imam of unauthorised independent prayer congregation

Islamic Minister advises Maldivians against participating in foreign wars

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)

Changi signs consultancy deal as MACL aims for 9.6 million passengers

Singapore’s Changi Airport International has today signed a deal to provide consultancy services for the renewal and expansion of Malé international airport.

During a ceremony held this morning Maldives Airport Company Ltd (MACL) Managing Director Ibrahim ‘Bandu’ Saleem revealed that the new masterplan envisioned 9.6 million passengers using the airport by 2030.

Saleem questioned why “not much has been done for the development of Malé international airport”, saying that financial arrangements with China’s Exim Bank were in place, with work expected to start early next year.

A previous concession agreement with India’s GMR for the management and operation of the airport was terminated in late 2012, with the company winning its arbitration case against the Government of Maldives in June this year.

Political opposition to the GMR deal focused on nationalist sentiment, and President Abdulla Yameen has emphasised the importance of retaining government control over Ibrahim Nasir International Airport (INIA).

Both Changi CEO Lim Liang Song and Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb spoke today of the strong emotional symbolism of the airport.

“As we know, our airport is very much emotionally attached – it’s not only an airport, but an airport that was built by Maldivian people and it is in their sentiments and it is President Yameen’s vision to develop the airport by the government of Maldives and to keep its operation under the government of Maldives,” said Adeeb.

Song compared this sentiment with Singaporean’s feelings towards Changi International Airport, noting that this would be kept in mind as the group.

“At the end of this, we are the consultants. We will give you best advice on practices on processes – the airport has to be moved by the emotions, the vision, of the government as well as MACL,” he explained.

During today’s signing ceremony, Adeeb discussed the government’s vision for the airport, noting that infrastructure would have to be complemented by enhanced human resources in order to provide an international class facility.

“We look forward to opening a brand new, luxurious, airport where the high end tourists would like to spend their time and have that luxurious feeling – a feeling that they are in an airport in the most beautiful destination in the world.”

Adeeb has previously explained that Changi, which manages Singapore’s multiple award-winning Changi airport, would be hired as consultants as they are better qualified to work with Chinese and Japanese contractors.

Following GMR’s renovations to the current international terminal in 2012 – part of the country’s largest foreign investment deal – the project became overwhelmed by political opposition, leaving the foundations of a new terminal to rust on newly reclaimed land.

After arbitration proceedings found the agreement to have been valid and binding, GMR have recently revealed they are seeking US$803 million for damages and loss of reputation – a figure equivalent to around two thirds of next year’s forecast state revenue.

With the court yet to conclude on the amount owed by the Government of Maldives, GMR were reported to have expressed surprise when a preliminary agreement was signed with Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG) to upgrade INIA.

2013 saw over 1.3 million tourists land at INIA – around one third of which were Chinese.

MACL’s Bandu Saleem noted today that the government also had plans to expand regional airports – of which there are currently ten – with plans to develop an airport in Raa Atoll.

Correction: this article previously incorrectly stated MACL had signed an agreement with Changi Airport Group. MACL signed an agreement with Changi Airports International.


Related to this story

Airport development begins, with “no chance” of GMR returning to project

GMR lodges US$803million claim, pleads for award of further damages for loss of reputation

GMR surprised with decision to give airport development to Chinese firm

Agreements on bridge and airport penned during Chinese president’s visit

Likes(0)Dislikes(0)