President-elect Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has indicated that the formula to free former President Abdulla Yameen is by reforming the judiciary.
Yameen was jailed to 11 years in prison after being convicted of bribery and money laundering in connection to the leasing of an island.
Muizzu pledged to free Yameen and the former leader was transferred to his home in Male' following Muizzu's election victory in late September.
The Male' city Mayor and former housing minister appeared on Talk to Al Jazeera show and said he would take two steps to free courts from political influence.
One is to change the composition of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and exclude politicians from the commission, he noted.
The second step is to separate the administration of the judiciary from the JSC, he added.
Muizzu claimed Yameen's conviction was politically motivated and said that the country's judiciary is not "free at the moment."
"It is not free at the moment. And I will ensure from day one that the system is free and fair. And I will take steps to ensure that the system is free and fair," he said.
The JSC consists of two MPs and the Attorney General - who are active politicians. The current government also introduced a bill to change the composition of the commission.
Since the MDP has a majority in the 19th parliament, it will not be easy to change the composition of the JSC as Muizzu wants. The current parliamentary term expires next year.
