Malé City Council (MCC) has alleged that police officers and some housing ministry staff are impersonating city council supervisors and unlawfully trying to confiscate items at the local market.
According to an MCC press statement released today (February 8), the local market falls under the jurisdiction of the city council as part of the Decentralisation Act.
However, the council said it had been receiving complaints from market traders saying that police and housing ministry staff are pretending to be council supervisors and attempting to confiscate items.
Repeated removals of the council’s powers by central authorities has led to suggestions that the government is trying to “destroy decentralisation”.
The removal of lands formerly under the council’s jurisdiction in December last year saw the city mayor admit that his council now oversaw only construction, issuing death and birth certificates, and cleaning mosques.
Later the same month, the housing ministry transferred over one third of the council’s employees to its own offices.
The council today condemned the acts of the officials accused, saying that this activity was being carried out without consulting the council in order to defame it.
The Maldives National Defense Force has urged the public to refrain from trying to catch crocodiles without assistance as sightings around the country continue to rise.
MNDF information officer Major Adnan told Avas that as crocodiles are listed as dangerous animals, it is inadvisable to try and catch them without proper assistance, and that such attempts could end in disaster.
“It is important to call the authorities as soon as you see the crocodile. Sometimes, MNDF have been contacted after the crocodile flees an unsuccessful attempt to capture it. It is then very hard to track and find the animal,” said Major Adnan.
Crocodile sightings have been on the rise after a 10 foot specimen was captured in Laamu Kalhaidhoo last month, with Avas reporting that seven crocodile sightings have subsequently been received by authorities – mostly in the north of the country.
While crocodiles are not native to the Maldives, it is believed that the increased crocodile sightings coincide with the beginning of the Iruvai (North Eastern) monsoon.
The family of 24-year-old Abdulla Maail, reported missing on January 27, has expressed concerns that police have been negligent in their investigation of his disappearance.
Lhaimagu Island Council has echoed these concerns, saying they are “not at all satisfied” with the manner the police have handled parts of the investigation.
Maail – from Dhaalu Atoll Kudahuvadhoo – went missing from the uninhabited island of Firunbaidhoo in Shaviyani Atoll, where he was employed on an agriculture project.
Only one other person, 62-year-old Hassan Ali, was on the island at the time of the disappearance. He reported Maail to be missing on the afternoon of January 27, according to police.
Police officials have denied the suggestions of negligence, saying that the search up to this point had been prompt and thorough.
‘Delays narrow chances of finding Maail’: Council
Lhaimagu Councillor Ahmed Shinan said the police had taken long time to respond after the disappearance was reported, expressing concern that the chances of finding Maail had subsequently narrowed.
“Hassan Ali told us, in the presence of other council members and police, that he reported Maail’s disappearance to police at 4.30pm. Police, however, did not arrive on the island until after 11pm that night,” claimed the councillor.
“It took over 6 hours for police to come, when the distance between Firunbaidhoo and Fonadhoo can be travelled in just under 10 minutes by speedboat. We heard later from the island’s proprietor that police refused to come until he arranged speed boat transfer for them”.
Police today acknowledged some “transportation challenges” after the case was reported, but said they had begun work on the case immediately after being alerted.
“We only received reports at 6.30pm and I think police reached the scene around 9pm,” a media official told Minivan News.
According to the Shinan, however, locals waited hours for police to arrive at the scene.
Locals search the island of Firunbaidhoo
“This was valuable time wasted when we could have commenced the search for Maail. We’re talking about a human being that’s gone missing, not some petty robbery. We cannot afford to be careless in the investigation,” he said.
Shinan said that the police had left the island unattended after the initial search, giving potentially guilty parties an opportunity to eliminate or tamper with evidence.
He also argued that witnesses had not been investigated thoroughly enough, suggesting that reports of a supply dinghy having visited the island minutes before Maail’s absence was realised could be key.
The councillor also expressed disappointment that it took police over two days to begin searching the sea.
Police have denied the delay, saying that the coast guard-assisted search began the day after the reported disappearance. Officials declined from giving further details as the investigation continues.
Family feels unsupported
Maail’s brother Mohamed Shifau has travelled to the capital Malé from Meemu atoll, after the family had been unable to contact Shaviyani police.
“We have continuously tried calling the head of the Shaviyani Police Station to ask for updates on the investigation, but he hasn’t answered our calls even once in the past week,” he told Minivan News.
“There are certain aspects of the investigation that we believe the police overlooked, some people that they haven’t questioned, and so on. We shared that information with the police in Malé.”
The family have also sent a letter outlining their concerns to the Commissioner of Police Hussain Waheed, though they have as yet received no reply.
Dissatisfied with the response from police, Shifau appealed to politicians for assistance, meeting with politicians across the spectrum.
“The Shaviyani Atoll Fonadhoo constituency’s parliamentarian Ali Saleem met with us, but said he could give us no more than five minutes. He stated that the police will investigate the matter and there is nothing else he can do for us,” Shifau explained.
After failing to contact Kudahuvadhoo constituency MP Ahmed Amir, Shifau met with the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).
“The MDP was very sympathetic, and Chairperson Ali Waheed promptly arranged a meeting with a committee from the party. They provided assistance by guiding our family on future steps that can be taken,” Shifau said.
Political leaders have taken to social media to mark three years since the resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed in 2012.
While former President and leader of the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) Maumoon Abdul Gayoom wished all “patriotic Maldivians” a “Happy 7th February”, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) leader Nasheed posted the lyrics of a melancholic Dhivehi ballad.
Nasheed’s message contained the lyrics to a song which describes the “many tears shed that day” – originally written about the death of a couple from Galolhu Penzeemaage, killed when their Dhoni capsized near Malé in the 1980s.
He has made no other official comments regarding the day of his departure from office.
Nasheed resigned on February 7, 2012, after mutinying security forces joined anti-government protesters, demonstrating against the arrest of Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed – for which Nasheed still faces criminal charges.
Happy 7th February to all patriotic Maldivians! Let us move forward in unity n peace! pic.twitter.com/Lo9PAbVOgl
The protests’ leaders included key opposition figures from PPM, Jumhooree Party (JP), Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party, and the religious conservative Adhaalath Party.
Current Minister of Home Affairs Umar Naseer – who stood in the front lines of opposition protests against Nasheed’s presidency – said yesterday that the date was a “proud day for Maldives, Islam and the constitution”, thanking everyone who stood against the country’s fourth president.
7th Feb 2012, a proud day for Maldives, Islam and the constitution. I thank all those who stood up against a dictator in-the-making. — Umar Naseer (@UmarNaseerPPM) February 6, 2015
Naseer this weekend announced his exit from JP after the party joined the MDP in an agreement to defending the Constitution – receiving public praise from Gayoom for his decision.
Meanwhile, other protagonists in the events surrounding Nasheed’s resignation struck a more conciliatory tone, with Adhaalath Party President Sheikh Imran Abdulla saying “the nation cannot move forwards without forgiving and building friendships”.
Sheikh Imran described the events of February 7 and 8, 2012 as “dangerous and sad”.
After supporting Gasim in the first round of the 2013 presidential elections and President Abdulla Yameen in the run-off, Adhaalath is considered an unofficial coalition partner in the government, with the party assigned the Ministry of Islamic Affairs.
Nasheed has recently used the events leading up to and following his departure from office to suggest that the current government has lost legitimacy following the JP’s withdrawal from the governing coalition.
He has cited the Commission of National Inquiry (CoNI) report, which concluded that change of government was “legal and constitutional”, and the events of February 6-7 “were, in large measure, reactions to the actions of President Nasheed”.
“[I]t is evident that President Nasheed lost the support of the coalition supporting the MDP which had brought him to power and it is an irrefutable fact that MDP never enjoyed a clear majority in the Parliament,” read the Commonwealth-assisted report.
Even without the support of the JP’s 13 MPs, the ruling PPM currently enjoys a clear majority in the People’s Majlis, controlling 49 seats alongside the its ally, the Maldivian Development Alliance.
Nasheed stated last week that, with the CoNI report arguing that the transfer of power on February 7 was made in accordance with the law: “Yameen, we are also going to change your government in that very path deemed legal”.
Former Defense Minister Colonel (retired) Mohamed Nazim was brought to the Maldives Police Services (MPS) headquarters to give a statement last night (February 7).
A police media official told Minivan News that Nazim was summoned in order to obtain a statement regarding the ongoing investigation into weapons found at Nazim’s home.
Nazim’s lawyer Maumoon Hameed – who has replaced former Attorney General Azima Shukoor as Nazim’s legal representative – confirmed that he and some of his family members have provided the police with statements.
“I would like to reiterate that Nazim has been assisting the police with this investigation since day one,” Hameed told Minivan News today. “In doing so, Nazim and members of his family provided DNA samples and fingerprints to the police.”
The MPS had previously revealed that it found a pistol and a makeshift explosive device at Nazim’s home during a raid under a court warrant in the early hours of January 18.
Speaking to the media on January 29, Commissioner of Police (CP) Hussein Waheed said that, after searching Nazim’s home using “forced entry”, police found a 9mm handgun, an improvised explosive device, 3 bullets, and a magazine.
Nazim’s lawyer immediately released a statement denying that the items found were there with the former minister’s knowledge.
“The items claimed to have been found at Colonel Mohamed Nazim’s residence by Police Commissioner Hussein Waheed do not belong to Colonel Nazim or his family, and if there were any items were present at the house, they were there without Colonel Nazim’s or his family’s knowledge,” read the statement.
Both Nazim and his wife’s passport have been withheld by authorities, with Commissioner Waheed explaining that police did not consider taking Nazim into custody to be the “best course of action to proceed depending on his profile”.
“However, as you can see we have prevented him from leaving abroad,” he added.
Additionally, Commissioner Waheed said that police had written to the Maldivian National Defense Force to verify ownership of the weaponry, being informed that no items were missing from the military’s inventory.
Police have maintained that the service was not aware it was Nazim’s home until after the raid, noting that they had adhered to international best practices and that Nazim was present during the search.
Waheed described the weapons as “very dangerous”, saying that, while the handgun could be lethal, the explosive device when matched with another component could cause “large scale destruction”.
Nazim – who was also acting health minister and head of immigration – was dismissed from his post on January 20, three days after the police raid.
Speaking to the media at the time, Nazim said that events had shown that no Maldivian was assured of safety and security.
“This gives an alarming signal that entering any house, at any time and to do anything is possible. The defence minister is the most senior official standing beside the president,” he told the press immediately following his dismissal.
Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Hassan Shifau has been appointed to the post of additional secretary at the level of deputy minister, reports CNM.
Shifau, who has served as the permanent secretary at the foreign ministry from February, 2012, had previously held the post of foreign ministry’s deputy director general, heading the regional cooperation department.
Aishath Liusha Zahir and Dr Shehenaz Adam also currently serve as additional secretaries at the foreign ministry.
Meanwhile, the Civil Services Commission last Tuesday (February 3) called for interested parties to submit their applications for the vacant permanent secretary post before 2pm on February 26.
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