Tag: parliament

Parliament has authority over Police and MNDF, declares Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of the Maldives has declared that both the Police and the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) should be answerable to parliament and its National Security Committee – known as the 241 Committee – whenever requested.

The Supreme Court said the decision was made after all judges unanimously agreed on the matter, which relates to overseeing the procedures of the nation’s security forces.

The declaration was delivered after parliament, under article 95 of the Constitution, requested the Supreme Court provide legal council on the issue back in November last year, when the police and military failed to attend the Majlis for questioning when called.

Article 95 states that ”The People’s Majlis may, by resolution, refer to the Supreme Court for hearing and consideration of important questions of law concerning any matter, including the interpretation of the constitution and the constitutional validity of any statute.

The Supreme Court shall answer the questions so referred and shall provide the answers to the People’s Majlis, giving reasons for its answers.

Parliament last year attempted to summon the Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Faseeh and MNDF Major General Moosa Ali Jaleel for questioning, who then both dismissed the parliament’s requests and refused to attend the meeting.

The Supreme Court said Article 239 (b) states that ‘’the security services shall be subject to the authority of the People’s Majlis.’’

The Supreme Court also said that, according to article 99 (a) and (b), it was clear that the parliament is obliged to supervise every action of the security services and to ensure that their actions are within the constitution and laws.

It is a legal responsibility of the parliament to question cabinet ministers over their work and cabinet ministers are obliged to answer truthfully to the parliament according to the constitution, the Supreme Court said.

The Parliament’s 241 Committee is chaired by opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ali Waheed.

When the 241 committee tried to summon both the police commissioner and the MNDF’s major general last year, the committee’s scheduled meeting was cancelled after alleged clashes with some Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MPs.

MDP MPs then accused the 241 committee of attempting to influence bribery investigations into Jumhoory Party leader MP Gasim ‘Buruma’ Ibrahim and Peoples Alliance (PA) Party leader MP Abdulla Yamin, who were then kept under house arrest.

Yamin and Gasim are both also members of the 241 Committee.

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MDP Parliamentary Group calls for dismissal of MMA Governor

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Parliamentary Group has called on the President to remove the Governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) Fazeel Najeeb from his position, accusing him of irresponsibility and “repeatedly failing to fulfill his legal obligations”.

In a statement, the Party said that the MMA Governor was legally required to not pursue any work other than that required of his role in the MMA.

”However because he is currently studying he spends most of the time out of the country,” said the MDP in a statement. ”Although the laws on MMA obligate the Governor to council the President on the financial condition of the country, the instruction and council is not being given to the president.”

The party claimed that Fazeel was not cooperating with the government to find a solution for the difficulty in bringing foreign currency to the country.

The statement explained that the Governor of the MMA is appointed and dismissed by the President with the council of the parliament, according to MMA Act, Act No 81/6 article 6 [3].

On 10 November last year, MDP Parliamentary group said the Finance Ministry had written to the Governor asking for steps the MMA would recommend be taken to resolve the foreign currency issue.

”But he never responded to the letter. The Finance Ministry wrote to the Governor again on January 16 of this year and he responded to the letter on 10 February,” claimed the MDP Parliamentary group, “but he did not mention how the issue might be solved.”

The parliamentary group further accused Fazeel of using the MMA’s credit card “for his own purposes.”

Minivan News attempted to contact Fazeel to respond to the MDP’s allegations, however his phone was switched off. Spokesperson for the MMA Ahmed Naseer told Minivan News that Fazeel was currently not in the Maldives and was unavailable for comment.

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MP Privileges Bill sent to committee for amendment

The MPs Privileges Bill has been today sent back to committee for review and amendment.

Out of 67 MPs present in the Majlis today, 40 of them voted in favor of sending it to the committee for amendment.

DRP MPs did not vote to send the bill to the committee, according to Haveeru, while there were two MPs who did not vote on the issue. Some DRP members did speak out during the session to call for amendments to the bill.

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) MP Alhan Fahmy, who previously voted in favour of the bill, said during today’s parliamentary sitting that the privileges for MPs were very clearly stated in article 90 of the Maldives constitution. He called on fellow members to send the bill to committee for amendment.

”In all the other countries, MPs do have some privileges,” said Alhan. ”In Article 127 of the constitution the procedures of how a MP should be arrested on criminal charges is mentioned.”

DRP MP for Naifaru, Ahmed Mohamed also suggested the bill should be sent to a committee for amendment.

”This bill was passed by the vote of MDP MPs, Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) and Independent MPs, now there is no reason that either should criticise the other,” said Mohamed.

Mohamed said he would not approve article 4[c] of the MPs privilege bill, which “states that MPs cannot be arrested while they are on the way to the parliament, inside the parliament or while they are on the way back from the parliament, even if they are charged on a criminal case,” said Mohamed.

”A MP might commit murder while on their way to parliament, but he can’t be arrested.”

PA MP for the Maavashu area, Abdul Azeez Jamal Abubakuru, also suggested that the bill should be sent for a committee for amendment.

”If this bill does not get passed I am fine, and if it gets passed also I am fine,” he said.

On January 17 President vetoed the controversial privileges bill, which would have seen MPs earning salary and benefits on a level with developed countries such as Sweden, as well as excusing them from paying import duties on automobiles and giving them immunity from prosecution.

The President made the decision following legal council from the Attorney General, Dr Ahmed Ali Sawad, as well as consultation with the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM).

The bill, which was submitted by Vilufushi MP Riyaz Rasheed, was passed with 44 to 21 in favour, and 10 abstentions, and would have seen MPs earning thousands of dollars more in salary and allowances than MPs in countries such as France, India and Italy.

The matter has triggered lively demonstrations outside parliament since it was first announced, while a group of “concerned citizens” petitioned the President claiming that not only was the salary increase excessive, but that elements within it gave MPs extrajudicial and unconstitutional privileges. The bill was about less about state-building and more about status, the petitioners claimed.

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President did not mention corruption and mismanagement in his speech: PA

The minority opposition People’s Alliance Party (PA) led by Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom has said issued a statement responding to the presidential address of Mohamed Nasheed delivered on March 3 during the opening ceremony of parliament’s first session of this year. The PA boycotted the first session of parliament.

‘’Peoples Alliance recognises and appreciates the slight change of tone of the Presidential Speech of 2011, although he partly fulfilled the purpose of the speech, he had failed to address the real issues facing his administration and the country,’’ said PA in the statement.

The PA said that the president did not mention the issues of corruption and mismanagement in his administration, and claimed that the citizens were disappointed because Nasheed had made no plans to solve these issues.

‘’The public was hopeful that the President would address the significant issues of 2010 and inform the public of policy changes to facilitate an atmosphere of trust between the government and opposition parties,’’ the PA said. ‘’We believe that this is important because the President lacks the ability to sit down with opposition parties. We also believe that sitting down together is not enough, the President needs to have the ability to sit together and work sincerely with opposition parties.’’

The President’s speech was presented more as a philosophy than a specific proposal, the PA claimed. “For example, the President expressed his intension to strengthen regulations within the context of the existing laws and implement those regulations to increase the value of Maldivian currency, but failed to explain the specifics of what he meant and what policy changes the business community should expect.”

The party claimed Nasheed’s remarks on deficit reduction were “misleading.”

‘’The forecasted deficit of 2010 wasn’t reduced by efforts of cost reduction.  In reality, the Rf1.2 billion (US$78 million) received by privatisation of the airport was recorded as income and used for recurrent expenditure of the budget. Therefore the expected budget deficit of Rf3.8 billion was reduced to Rf3.1 billion using this income,’’ the party said. “The only measure to reduce deficit in 2010 was to cut down the salaries of civil service. The number of political appointees is increasing year by year.”

PA said Nasheed’s statement on external debt “does not clearly draw the picture.”

At US$607 million we are witnessing a significant increase in the official external debt of the past two years, said the PA.

“We believe that the actual figure will be even higher than this.” PA claimed. “Because since the IMF has restricted the direct borrowing of the Ministry of Finance, the government has started borrowing through government companies by giving comfort letters to companies such as the Works Corporation for politically motivated projects.’’

These projects, PA claimed, would not bring any income to those companies and that the government would have to pay for these debts itself. ” Therefore the overall debt will be even higher than US$607 million.’’

The President’s proposal to strengthen regulations and implement them to increase value of rufiyaa “could mean that he will implement tight controls and control foreign currency exchange, from an economic point of view,” said PA.

‘’We strongly believe that the value of rufiyaa cannot be appreciated through force and strict regulations,’’ said the PA. ‘’Instead we need fiscal responsibility and economic stability to appreciate the value of rufiyaa.’’

The party said that providing housing ‘’is yet another tool to manipulate voters.’’

‘’The government’s plan to offer 25,000 square feet of land of subsidy for 10 housing units worth US$35,000 has failed, and until today not even one housing unit has been delivered from the 10,000 units promised.”

The PA said the few housing units that the government could deliver to the people would be delivered in 2013, “for no reason but to influence the presidential election.”

‘’The policy of duty exemption to the north and south regional ports is not a policy to increase trade in that area,’’ added the party. ‘’Rather it gives the opportunity to give tax exemption to a few businesses that are affiliated with the government.’’

The PA also said that although the President had stated that the capacity of the airport would be increased under its contract with GMR, ‘’the new development plan doesn’t include a new runway.’’

‘’That means only the same number of flights or a slight increase can be expected, since we are operating on a tight schedule even now,’’ the PA claimed. ‘’Additionally the privatisation of the airport does not help the dollar shortage. Dollar earnings for the airport and fuel will be repatriated outside the country while the payments by GMR to Maldivians and Maldivian parties will be paid in rufiyaa,” the PA alleged.

The PA accused Nasheed and his government of either “lacking basic knowledge” on the nation’s economy, or “lacking sincerity and commitment to solve the economic issues.”

‘’The contradicting statements of the President regarding the dollar shortage are a fact supporting that President Nasheed is having difficulties understanding the economy,’’ said PA.’’While he is so concerned with climate change and internal affairs of other countries to get fame, we suspect he is not even seriously thinking about the national security and the impact of his policies on our economy.’’

PA urged the President ‘’to drop out of campaign mode’’ and face reality.

“At the end of the day success will be measured by outcome. Vision does not create jobs, we need to see meaningful and sustainable real action.’’

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PA to boycott Presidential address to parliament

MPs from the People’s Alliance (PA) party have said they will boycott the speech to be given by President Mohamed Nasheed at the first parliamentary session of 2011.

”PA believes that the Presidential address Nasheed gave during the first sitting of the first session of 2010 was not given as stated in article 84 of the constitution,” said the PA in a statement.

Article 84 of the constitution says that at the beginning of the first parliament session of each year, the President shall address the Majlis on the state of the country, as well as present proposals for trying to improve the nation.

The PA stated that rather than giving Nasheed’s presidential address as a speech based on the state of the nation and proposals to improve the state, his last opening address was based on threatening opposition figures.

”The presidential address was a hopeless speech, thus a speech that threatened the citizens,” said the party in the statement.

PA alleged that the president had attempted to smear the respect and sanctity of parliament and also attempted to make the pubic lose confidence in their the MPs.

The party recalled the arrest of Jumhoory Party leader and MP Gasim Ibrahim, as well as PA Leader and MP Abdulla Yamin, claiming the president misused the power of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) to detain them.

Criminal charges against the opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MPs Ali Waheed and Mahlouf were said to be politically motivated, the party alleged.

”Moreover, he [the president] made false accusations about MPs, made the entire cabinet resign, called MPs ‘wild animals’, attempted to run the government with a cabinet that does not have the consent of the parliament and made the parliament face obstacles in conducting its work fully,” claimed the PA. ”[Nasheed] gave warnings about all this during his presidential address [in 2010].”

The PA also claimed that the current government has always violated the constitution and laws.

Press Secretary for the President Mohamed Zuhair told Minivan News that the decision of the opposition parties were against the national spirit.

”It is the constitutional duty of the president, not something that is initiated by the government,” said Zuhair. He added that the President will give his presidential speech regardless of whether members of the opposition boycotted it.

Zuhair said ”that means the opposition started to use National Ceremonies as political tools.”

”If they boycott the presidential address, they are betraying the citizens,” he said. ”They are the symbols of the citizens.”

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Raising parliament’s wall to 12 feet “sends wrong message”: MP Nasheed

Parliament has announced its intention to increase the height of the building’s boundary wall to 12 feet to increase the security of the building.

Secretary General of the Parliament Secretariat Ahmed Mohamed told local media earlier that the decision was made on the advice of security services “to prevent people from climbing the wall or throwing things.” The Secretariat is currently searching for a contractor to do the work.

Parliament has been subjected to recurrent protests outside its gates, most recently by demonstrators against the MP Privileges Bill and new pay structure, which would have seen the salaries of Maldivian MPs increased to a level on par with those in Sweden, as well as introduced a plethora of benefits ranging from tax-free cars to certain immunities from the criminal justice system.

President Mohamed Nasheed refused to ratify the bill yesterday, after consulting the Attorney General, Human Rights Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) and receiving 289 letters of concern from the public.

Independent MP Mohamed ‘Kutti’ Nasheed said that he did not think the solution to public concern regarding MPs and their work was “to turn parliament into a fortress.”

“I believe parliament should be seen to be accessible, open and transparent – a symbol of open democracy,” he said.

“There have been quite a lot of disturbances outside, and odd comments towards parliamentarians sitting having coffees, and a lot of unruly elements in the area, but I don’t believe this justifies raising the wall,” he said.

“I’m not sure how this came about – I just heard they were looking for a contractor to raise the wall. I don’t see it as a solution – it sends a message of defiance, which is not the right message to send to the public.”

MP Nasheed, who abstained from the vote over the controversial MP Privileges bill, said he believed the President was justified in refusing to ratify it.

“I didn’t want to express an opinion on it. There are issues I like, but there are things in it I don’t like. I believe it exceeds the ambit of priviledges and guarantees that parliamentarians need to carry out their work.”

Nasheed said he felt the term ‘priviliege’ could be misleading and said he understood it in a techincal sense as distinct from ‘benefits’, in that ‘privileges’ provided that which MPs required to function free of interference.

“[Things like] elevating status in society, seating orders, use of the [airport] VIP lounge on departure, special treatment at the places MPs visit – I don’t believe these are necessary for an MP to function,” he said. “These are not privileges, they are benefits.”

“As for the criminal [immunities], I don’t believe any parliamentarian should be exempt or receive special treatment from criminal proceedings. There are concerns about the surveillance of MPs and advantages taken of this monitoring, but I believe the criminal justice system must come into action, even against an MP. But there should be a parliamentary mechanism in parallel to check on the process.”

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Protesters petition President not to ratify MP Privileges Bill

A group of “concerned citizens” today gathered outside the President’s office to present a letter to president Mohamed Nasheed requesting him not to ratify the recently-passed MPs Privilege Bill.

The protesters claimed that the bill was passed by the MPs for the sake of unfair personal gain, and should not be ratified.

”If the bill is to be passed, the salaries and allowances for the police and independent commissions should be increased,” said a protester, claiming that “we are not from any political party but we are representing the citizens.”

The letter stated that the Privileges Bill was against the Constitution and the objective of parliamentary privileges.

”[The Bill] allows [MPs] to import expensive assets (such as cars) duty free, receive pensions in a different manner to normal citizens, and benefit from an expensive insurance scheme, all of which are definitely against the purpose of MP privileges,” the letter said. ”The bill also obstructs the conduct of criminal justice proceedings in the Maldives, antd contains many other things that independent democratic countries do not accept.”

The letter noted that the bill stated that MPs were to be treated differently in criminal cases, and called on the president to reject the bill and to send it back to parliament.

Minivan News reported last week reported that should the bill be ratified, the salaries and allowances of Maldivian MPs would amount to thousands of dollars more than their counterparts in many developed countries.

In their defence of the bill some MPs have argued that an MP’s salary of Rf 62,500 a month includes allowances, while the cash component represents a “welfare fund” to be drawn on by their constituents.

Even before the proposed increases, every Maldivan indirectly spends approximately US$20.65 (Rf 265) a year (derived via ‘invisible’  taxes on goods such as import duties) supporting roughly 120 politicians across both parliament and the executive, assuming a population of 350,000, GDP of US$1.6 billion and a share of the country’s ‘cake’ equal to about US$5000 (ignoring income disparity).

In similar vein, Australians pay approximately US$7.40 (Rf 95) a year to support parliament and the executive across all states and territories – meaning that Maldivians not only individually pay three times more than Australians in dollar terms to support their politicians, but seven times more when this bill is expressed as part of each citizen’s share of total GDP.

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Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate JSC embezzlement allegations

President’s member on the Judicial Services Commission (JSC) Aishath Velezinee has referred the judicial watchdog to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), accusing it of embezzling state funds by awarding a ‘committee allowance’ contrary to Article 164 of the Constitution.

Article 164 states that “A member of the Judicial Service Commission who is not a member of the Executive, the Judiciary, or the People’s Majlis shall be paid such salary and allowances as may be determined by the People’s Majlis.”

Only JSC members Velezinee, Sheikh Shuaib Abdu Rahmaan and lawyer Ahmed Rasheed are paid salaries as they do not hold state posts.

However Velezinee has alleged that all commission members – including those with state incomes – are earning Rf 500 for each commission meeting and Rf 300 for each committee meeting, and claimed that these allowances were not approved by the parliament and were therefore unlawful.

The budget for the JSC commission members, obtained by Minivan News, confirms Velezinee’s claims that JSC members are in some cases receiving up to Rf 9000 (US$700) a month as a ‘committee allowance’; a total of Rf 514,660 (US$40,000) in 2010.

“JSC members have been taking allowances for the meetings and committees they attend stating that this has been decided by JSC,” Velezinee said.

“The decisions in the JSC defer day to day depending on the views of the members present at the time. This decision has no legal backbone to support it and will not at all make any sense to a sane person.”

Furthermore, she said, “the JSC is not independent. Some members use their position, power and connections (including with judges and the Judges Association of the Maldives) to spread absolute lies to discredit and defame me which has prevented me from carrying out my responsibility according to the Constitution.”

The JSC, she noted, had not even provided her chair in which to sit for over a year. “Every time I sit down somewhere in the office they find another use for the space the next day. Junior staff don’t even seem to think I’m a member of the commission.”

On January 3 Velezinee was hospitalised after she was stabbed three times in the back in broad daylight on the main tourist street of Male’, an attack international organisations such as Transparency International have condemned as potentially “politically motivated.”

Velezinee said she has repeatedly asked the Commission to stop paying the allowance into her bank account, “even giving them cheques for the money”, but says she is always met with prevarication. The budget shows that Attorney General Ahmed Ali Sawad, also a JSC member, has declined to receive any money from the Commission.

Despite drawing the allowances that Velezinee alleges are fraudulent, the Commission also failed to investigate any of the 140 complaints against judges sent to it in 2010. Furthermore, 122 complaints sent to the Commission in 2009 were rejected “as irrelevant.”

A statement issued by the JSC claimed that parliament had approved the allowances.

”Although that is the truth, on January 10, 2011, Presidential Member of the Commission Aishath Velezinee misinformed the media about this without clarifying the matter,” read the statement. ”We advise her to uphold the code of conduct as mentioned in article 17 of the Judicial Service Commission.”

Yesterday JSC President Adam Mohamed and Vice President Dr Afrasheem Ali called a press conference in the JSC’s meeting room, but cancelled it after Velezinee attended the press conference and sat with the journalists.

The press conference was later held in Maldives National Broadcasting Corporation (MNBC) studio without Velezinee being informed.

During the conference, when journalists questioned why the first meeting was canceled, Adam replied that no members of the commission other than those who the commission decided could attend were permitted to attend the press conference.

Haveeru reported Deputy Commissioner Dr Afrasheem Ali as saying the constitution did not say that the allowance could not be given unless the parliament approved it.

The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) has said it will begin investigating the case as a serious issue.

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Privileges Bill will see Maldives MPs earning on par with Sweden

A comparison of Maldivian MPs salaries and allowances with those of MPs in other countries reveals that should the recently-passed MP Privilieges Bill be ratified, Maldivian MPs will earn thousands more than their counterparts in many developed countries.

The comparative list, currently being circulated by protesters on the ‘Majlis Membarunge Musaara Bodu kurumaa Dhekolhah’ Facebook group lobbying against the recently-passed MP Privileges Bill, notes that Majlis MPs have voted themselves a total monthly salary increase from US$4863 to US$7083 (including base salary and allowances of $US1667), despite the country having a crippling budget deficit of over US$370 million.

According to the comparison, also available as an interactive graph, an Indian MP earns US$5966 per month, a French MP US$6651 and an Italian MP US$6936.

In fact if the bill were ratified in its current state, a Maldivian MP would earn just US$215 a month less than MPs in Sweden, one of the world’s most highly developed economies and ranked ninth in the United Nations’ Human Development Index. The Maldives ranked 86th.

Ahmed Adheeb, a local financial consultant in the private sector, observed that MPs were seeking to raise their salaries and allowances at a time when the country was in a “very critical economic situation”, and under pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to drastically cut the wage bill for civil servants and independent institutions.

“I hope the President does not ratify it, for the sake of the country,” he said, suggesting that neither parliament or the independent institutions had performed to a standard befitting a substantial pay increase in a climate of economic catastrophe.

“Parliament and independent institutions are trying to give themselves increased pay and benefits without justifying what the country is getting in return – for instance, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has not concluded a case since 2008,” he observed.

“We haven’t had an Auditor General appointed for over a year. Banks are investing in T-bills and bonds because they feel they are more secure, and so they are giving loans to the private sector. The Maldive Monetary Authority (MMA)’s foreign exchange reserve is falling. Everyone, including the IMF, has agreed we are in bad shape.”

While the deficit had improved to 16 percent of GDP, this was in part due to several “once-off” income events such as the US$78 million upfront payment from Indian infrastructure giant GMR.

“I think people need to realise how bad the situation is – very few people are talking about the economy,” Adheeb said.

DRP MP Rozaina Adam, who voted in favour of the MP Privileges Bill, said the party had a whip line “and most MPs wanted to pass it”.

“It’s unfortunate that parliament has to decide its own salary,” she noted. “Ministers don’t decide their own salaries, we do it. On the other hand, it is written in the constitution that we determine our own.”

Rozaina explained that the figure of Rf 62,500 (US$4883) commonly given as the MPs salary “is not our full salary – it includes our living allowances, phone bills, secretariat, travel.”

It was also important to note, she said, that in the Maldives an MP’s salary “is also seen as a welfare fund by many people. If anything goes wrong, constituents go to their MPs. It has been like this for a long time now, and I feel we need to move out of it – these are things that are supposed to be done by the government, but it has been a tradition for a long time to ask MPs. When someone comes and says their nine year-old needs a kidney transplant, it is hard to say no. In the long term, this means that only rich people can be MPs.”

Nonetheless, Rozaina said, protests outside parliament over the MP’s salary increases “don’t really reflect what the public is thinking. Most of [the protesters] were MDP supporters. I think the government is very unpopular at the moment, and because of that the President is trying to degrade the work of parliament. and the government is doing its best to make people think parliament is not doing enough. After the bill was passed I travelled to Haa Alif and Haa Dhaal Atolls and nobody was talking about it there, and there were no protests.”

Adheeb suggested that because of the penchant in parliament and independent institutions for members to approve themselves salary increases, “I propose an independent commission to structure the pay scale, linked to the economy and bench-marked against the private sector – because it is the private sector that generates the income for the government.”

The country’s fledgling democracy, he said, was proving too expensive for the economy to sustain.

“The Constitution cannot be financed like this. When democracy first arrived in the US, people gave their own time to work in the Senate,” he noted.

Further taxing the private sector to fund a bloated state wage bill, he said, such as with the recently-passed Business Profit Tax, could not be done without improving confidence in the private sector.

“We have not had a direct tax on businesses before, instead we have had duties and a high import tax, relative to other countries, and businesses have passed the tax on to the public. Businesses prefer direct taxes, because it is a tax after profit rather than a tax on imports during operations. But my concern is not so much increased taxes, but whether the money that is being collected is being invested in good purposes.”

None of the three arms of state, or any of the independent institutions, were really concerned with the economy, Adheeb said, “just their own policies and agendas.”

“Parliament has passed a budget with a huge deficit, but if you see any of their statements, they say they are worried about the economy. Yet now they are increasing their benefits.”

MP’s salaries compared:

Maldives
MP’s monthly salary (US $):7,083
(Base Salary: 5,416 & Allowance: 1,667)
GDP (US $) (2009 est): 1.683 billion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est): -$370 million

Sri Lanka
MP’s monthly salary (US $):877
Plus Rs 500 for every parliamentary session
GDP (US $) (2009 est): 96.47 billion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$291 million

India
MP’s monthly salary (US $):5,966
GDP (US $) (2009 est):3.68 trillion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$26.63 billion

Singapore
MP’s monthly salary (US $):9,264
GDP (US $) (2009 est):251.2 billion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):32.63 billion

UK
MP’s monthly salary (US $):8,552
GDP (US $) (2009 est):2.123 trillion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$23.65 billion

US
MP’s monthly salary (US $):14,500
GDP (US $) (2009 est):14.12 trillion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$378.4 billion

Australia
MP’s monthly salary (US $):9,687
GDP (US $) (2009 est):321.6 billion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):8.73 billion

France
MP’s monthly salary (US $):6,651
GDP (US $) (2009 est):2.094 trillion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$51.86 billion

Italy
MP’s monthly salary (US $):6,936
GDP (US $) (2009 est):1.737 trillion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):-$66.2 billion

Sweden
MP’s monthly salary (US $):7,298
GDP (US $) (2009 est):335.1 billion
Current Account Balance (US $) (2009 est):30.23 billion

Interactive comparison: http://www.shakeupmedia.com/mpsalary/

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