Tag: maldives news

Majlis committee approves candidates for PIC and MMA, rejects prosecutor general nominee

Parliament’s independent commission’s oversight committee has interviewed and decided upon appointees to the posts of Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) Governer, and Prosecutor General (PG), as well as a member of the Police Integrity Commission (PIC).

The committee’s Deputy Chair Rozaina Adam told Minivan News that the committee had approved nominees based on a grading scheme, and that each nominee needed to get over 75 percent of marks to be approved.

“Nominees for two of the posts we discussed yesterday received the required percentage of marks, the other didn’t. Approvals are based on a preset grading scheme, and not on members’ opinions,” Rozaina explained.

The committee approved Dr Azeema Adam for the post of Governer at MMA and Aiminath Rukshana to be a member of the five member PIC.

Presidential nominee for the post of Prosecutor General, Maumoon Hameed, did not receive sufficient marks for approval.

Dr Azeema Adam has served at the MMA since 1991. She is currently serving as Assistant Governor and Chief Economist, Monetary Policy, Research and Statistics at the MMA.

Adam has a PhD in Economics from the University of Canberra and a Masters Degree in International Development and Finance from the University of Leicester.

Her nomination for the governors role came after Yameen had previously forwarded the name of Ibthishama Ahmed Saeed, an associate director at the Bank of Maldives, before withdrawing it amid suggestions the candidate was not qualified for the role.

Previous governor, Dr Fazeel Najeeb, resigned in December citing personal reasons – though he urged the government to reduce expenses and refrain from printing money during his final press conference.

Presidential nominee to the police watchdog body, Aiminath Rukshana, also received the required 75 percent marks. Rukshana is originally from Liyaage in Maafannu ward of Malé City.

Presidential nominee to the post of prosecutor general, lawyer Maumoon Hameed was not able to receive the required percentage of votes.

The PG’s position has been vacant since former PG Ahmed Muiz resigned from the post prior to a scheduled no-confidence vote. The duties of the PG are currently being temporarily conducted by Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem.

After a running dispute with the PG’s Office over the acceptance of cases following the expiry of the constitutionally mandated period for appointing a new PG, the Criminal Court resumed accepting new cases after repeated interventions by the Supreme Court.

President Abdulla Yameen has recently accused the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party – holder of a majority of seats in the oversight committee – of obstructing the government’s attempt to appoint a new PG.

Lawyer Maumoon Hameed is the son of the Gayoom administration’s Atolls Minister Abdulla Hameed, and the nephew of incumbent President Yameen and ruling Progressive Party of Maldives leader Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

MP Rozaina Adam stated that the committee will present the report on its decision to the parliament speaker on Tuesday.

A final decision on the appointments will be taken through a parliamentary vote. The vote has thus far not been scheduled on agenda.

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President appoints deputy minister of finance and treasury

President Abdulla Yameen has appointed Imran Salih of Fehivilaage in the island of Hithadhoo in Addu City to the post of deputy minister of finance and treasury.

Local media reports that Salih has a Masters Degree in finance from the International Islamic University of Malaysia and a Bachelors Degree in accounting from the Multimedia University in Malaysia.

According to the President’s Office website, there are currently sixty other political appointees of the deputy ministerial rank.

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24 year old male found dead in Malé

A 24 year old male has been found dead in Annaarumaage in Henveiru ward of capital city Malé on Tuesday morning.

Police stated that the discovery of the body was reported to them at 9:15am on Tuesday.

The body has been moved to the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital with the aid of the Maldives National Defence Force.

Police did not reveal the identity of the male, or the circumstances surrounding the death.

A police media official stated that the reasons for death will be known after further investigation.

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Anti-trafficking conference concludes in Malé

A regional anti-human trafficking conference titled ‘Consultation to promote sub-regional collaboration on combating trafficking in persons’, held in Malé has concluded.

The conference – inaugurated by the Minister for Economic Development Mohamed Saeed – was organised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports, in collaboration Sri Lanka’s Solidarity Center, reports Sun Online.

The conference was attended by representatives from Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Qatar, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates.

Dr Ahmed Al Hashemi, Director of Middle East Centre for Training and Development is reported to have provided a presentation detailing how the UAE has employed a number of anti-trafficking mechanisms including electronic salary transfers and the establishment of specialist anti-trafficking committees within government departments.

The Maldives passed its first anti-trafficking legislation in December, defining the practice as a crime for the first time. The country had previously been placed on the US State Department’s Tier 2 Watch List for human trafficking for four years in a row, with suggestions that it could move to the third tier failing steps to address the issue.

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MNDF searches for missing Dhuvaafaru boat passenger

The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) has launched a search operation for man who went missing during a boat journey between the capital Malé and Dhuvaafaru, in Raa atoll, on Friday.

Mohamed Shaneez, 36, is reported to have last been seen between 2:45am and 3am on Saturday, with fellow passengers only noticing his absence when the boat arrived in Dhuvaafaru at 9am.

The boat made a 6am stop at Maakurathu island, with conflicting media reports as to whether the Shaneez was still on board at this point.

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Man arrested after trying to escape from courtroom window

A man who was taken to Criminal Court for a hearing to extend his detainment period has been arrested on Saturday (March 29) after he tried to escape by jumping out of a second floor window.

Local media outlet Haveeru reported that the Criminal Court identified the man as Hassan Nashid from Gaafu Alif atoll Dhevvadhoo. He was a suspect in a drug-related case, according to the court.

The man reportedly tried to escape after the court had extended his custody by five days. After jumping out the window, the man landed near the vehicle in which he was brought in, and was immediately apprehended by the police who were standing nearby.

According to Haveeru, police said that the man is now under their custody, but declined to comment on the injuries he had sustained from jumping through the window.

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Two more MPs-elect switch to Progressive Party of Maldives

Opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP-elect for Thaa Thimarafushi, Mohamed Musthafa, along with independent MP-elect for Haa Alif Dhidhoo, Abdul Latheef Mohamed, have joined the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).

The new signings brings the number of PPM MPs in the 18th People’s Majlis to 37, and the number of Progressive Coalition MPs to 57 with five from the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) and 15 from the Jumhooree Party (JP).

Abdul Latheef Mohamed defeated incumbent JP MP Ahmed Sameer in the March 22 polls with 40 percent of the vote while Musthafa won against incumbent PPM MP Ahmed Shareef Adam with a margin of nine votes.

Musthafa and Abdul Latheef signed their membership forms in the presence of PPM leader, former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, at a ceremony this afternoon in Nasandhuraa Palace Hotel.

Gayoom later tweeted: “PPM now has 37 seats in Majlis n our Coalition 57- a two-thirds majority. What an impressive achievement!”

President Abdulla Yameen, Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, Tourism Minister Ahmed Adeeb, and Defence Minister Colonel (Retired) Mohamed Nazim were also in attendance.

Musthafa told the press at the ceremony that he believed the government could develop the nation in the current climate of peace and stability.

Musthafa tweeted yesterday that he could not remain in parliament “making idle chatter” to the detriment of his constituents.

His first priority as an MP was the nation, followed by the constituency, and then political party, Musthafa tweeted.

“I’m MP elected to represent Thimarafushi [and] Veymando constituents. I will fight for them disregarding the politics they stand for,” he tweeted on March 24.

Speaker’s post

Meanwhile, of the five independent MPs-elect, three have now signed for the ruling PPM – including Naifaru MP-elect Ahmed Shiyam and Mahibadhoo MP-elect Mohamed Thoriq ‘Tom’.

Today’s signings follow friction in the coalition over the post of speaker of parliament. In the wake of JP leader Gasim Ibrahim’s announcement that he would seek the post, the PPM declared that it would nominate one of its MPs for speaker.

Following the polls, Gasim accused coalition party members of costing his party almost a third of the seats it had contested.

Other disgruntled JP candidates accused the PPM of attempting to “destroy” its coalition partner, suggesting that PPM members masquerading as independents actively campaigned against Gasim’s party.

With the addition of two more MPs-elect, the PPM and coalition partner MDA are presently just one vote short of the 43 simple majority without the JP.

Aside from the two remaining independents and the Adhaalath Party MP-elect for Haa Dhaal Makunudhoo, Anara Naeem, the opposition MDP has 25 MPs-elect.

Speaking to Minivan News today, MDP Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor said that the coalition was “obviously split on the question of the speaker.”

“They are not making a secret out of it,” he observed.

Hamid said Musthafa’s defection was “widely anticipated by a lot of MDP members”.

“We are currently in a settling down period. Obviously there will be candidates whose independence is compromised. What happens in this country is that their [candidates] capability to stand independently is compromised and they bow to coercion and pressure” he said.

“Another one bites the bite,” he added.

Hamid also suggested that the MDP’s primaries to select parliamentary candidates were “obviously flawed.”

“This doesn’t lend much credibility to the process. There was a lot of ‘branch stacking’ – a process where parties get candidates to sign for another party to influence their primary votes,” he explained.

Musthafa won the MDP primary for the Thimarafushi constituency against lawyer Abdulla Shairu, a member of former President Mohamed Nasheed’s legal team.

MP Musthafa

Musthafa was elected to the 17th People’s Majlis on an MDP ticket after beating Gassan Maumoon, son of former President Gayoom.

The High Court however annulled the results of two ballot boxes and ordered a revote after Gassan alleged widespread intimidation and irregularities in the poll.

The presiding judge in the three-judge High Court panel was Judge Ali Hameed, who was subsequently appointed to the Supreme Court bench.

Upon winning the revote, Musthafa described Gayoom as “the most brutal leader in the past 100 years.” He went on to severely criticise the former president in parliamentary debates.

In July 2010, Musthafa was arrested together with Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim for allegedly bribing MPs and a Civil Court judge.

Criminal Court Chief Judge Abdulla Mohamed however ordered police to release the pair, ruling that there were no reasonable grounds to grant an extension of pre-trial detention.

The pair were accused of offering US$6,000 as well as a return ticket for an overseas trip to a civil court judge to allegedly influence an ongoing case.

In March 2011, a phone conversation between Musthafa and Nazim surfaced in social media, implicating the MDP MP in secret deals with then-Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party Leader Ahmed Thasmeen Ali.

Musthafa is heard claiming in the leaked recording that Thasmeen offered financial assistance to his campaign in 2009.

On February 20, 2012 – less than two weeks after the controversial transfer of presidential power – the Supreme Court stripped MP Musthafa of his seat over a decreed debt.

Musthafa lost the subsequent by-election in the Thimarafushi constituency to PPM candidate Shareef.

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“Utilise these calm times to prepare for future challenges,” President Yameen tells police

President Abdulla Yameen has called on the police to not consider the current peaceful atmosphere in the country as a “permanent stability” although peace has been established after months of turmoil.

Speaking as guest of honour at the police force’s 81st anniversary celebrations, Yameen called on the police to prepare to for any challenges that may come their way in the near future, saying times of stability are the best times for forces to prepare for war.

“We should not delude ourselves into thinking that what we are experiencing today is a permanent state of stability. I appeal to the respectable police and your leaders to utilise these calm times to prepare for future challenges that may come your way,” he stated.

He went on to say that crime cannot be fought by the efforts of the police alone, and that together with the efforts of the police, the judicial process also needs to be expedited in criminal cases. He said that despite the police’s best efforts, results cannot be reaped unless the judicial branch cooperates with the efforts.

“If this is not done, regardless of how courageous the police force is, people will not have faith that there can be justice and stability amongst us,” the president said.

The Human Rights Commission’s (HRCM) annual report for 2013 recommended reform of the judiciary after it had received complaints reporting the slow speed at which cases are attended to by the courts in addition to the failure to take action against judges accused of misconduct.

“In my administration, I want the police to be seen by the public as responsible professionals who are skilled in the work they do,” continued Yameen.

“The police’s duty is today is not to protect merciless leaders. Instead, it is to serve humanity. The police are a force which saves lives and respects human rights. A force which protects people’s property from being harmed. A force which protects the society from harm,” he said.

Along the same lines as the words of his cabinet minister for home affairs, the president warned against harming police officers, stating the current government would not tolerate such acts.

“Police must always be accountable. There are also entities tasked with oversight of the police’s work. Police work will be criticised at times, and that, in the end, is something that the media must do. However, no one should resort to harming police officers. This government will never tolerate such acts,” he stated.

“I would like to happily inform all police officers that this government has submitted amendments to the Penal Code to parliament, on the passing of which, severe punishments will be dealt out to people to commit such acts. As the Penal Code gets revised, individuals who harass the police and those who cause harm to officers on duty will face strict punishments,” Yameen revealed.

The president went on to assure the police officers that the current government is also mindful of police welfare, pledging to attempt to find better housing for them.

He further pledged to provide technology and facilities needed to further develop the force. He asserted that police are trained not just with the objective of making them strong physically, but also to develop their minds to a capacity where they can be watchful over the three powers of the state.

“The people we have to face will not be patient persons, however they are Maldivians in whose service we remain. They will come to us with complaints.”

“They will be upset and angry when they come. However, police officers must remain patient and communicate diplomatically and manage things sincerely. The police are a force which remains in service of humanity,” Yameen advised the gathered officers.

A patient approach to those in police detention was also urged by the police commissioner last week after the HRCM’s report had noted a rise in mistreatment of those in police custody.

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Parliament extends Generals Regulations Act

Parliament has approved an extension to the General Regulations Act for a further one-year period.

The General Regulations Act was passed in late 2008 as a parent legislation for over 80 regulations without a statutory basis when the new constitution was adopted.

Article 271 of the constitution states, “Regulations derive their authority from laws passed by the People’s Majlis pursuant to which they are enacted and are enforceable pursuant to such lawful authority.”

The parent act prolonged the lifespan of the regulations – which did not derive authority from an act of parliament – until new legislation such as a Criminal Procedures Act and Evidence Act could be passed.

Parliament has since been periodically extending the General Regulations Act with a further extension of one year approved today with unanimous consent.

The 42 regulations (Dhivehi) in the law includes rules governing trial procedures, criminal and civil justice procedures, defamation cases, the insurance industry, finance leasing transactions, ports, telecommunications, business registration, operation of clinics, issuance of national identity cards, medicine, importation of animals and birds, and desalination.

Regulations governing the parole programme as well as prisons were omitted from the law following the enactment of the Jails and Parole Act this year.

A bill on the legal profession is meanwhile in the government’s legislative agenda (Dhivehi), to be submitted during the second session of the People’s Majlis for 2014.

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