Former President Abdulla Yameen on Friday night claimed to have a "full list" of senior officials from the Progressive Party of Maldives-People's National Congress (PPM-PNC) government who exerted influence over his trial.
Speaking at a rally of Yameen's new party, the People's National Front (PNF), the former PPM-PNC leader alleged the involvement of senior officials from the current government in stalling the appeal of his 11-year prison sentence.
However, he did not reveal any names. The top officials will be named when the times comes, he said.
"When my case was ongoing at the High Court, I have a full list of the senior people who are now working at the garudhiya jagaha [fish broth meeting hall] that meddled in it. I also know which judge they called," Yameen said, dubbing the ruling PNC's meeting hall near the PNF office as the "fish broth hall" in a mocking reference to a controversial appeal by a President's Office Minister for the public to tighten belts by eating cheaper food.
Yameen also alleged efforts within the PPM-PNC to withdraw the presidential ticket from him. The effort had been led by a minister of the current government, he said, without naming the minister.
"It's not that we don't know these things, okay. We're not revealing their names yet because the time hasn't come, okay. They will know who among them that we're talking about," Yameen said.
The judgement in Yameen's appeal came two days before the parliamentary election after multiple delays caused by judges taking leave after hearings concluded.
No effort in good faith to secure release
No work was done with good intentions to secure his release after President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu won the presidential election, Yameen said on Friday night.
Despite claiming otherwise, Muizzu did not request Yameen's release when he met then-President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as the President-elect, Yameen said.
"Muizzu did not say at the meeting, 'transfer President Yameen to house arrest, free President Yameen.' This is something that all Maldivian citizens should know. That was so early on," Yameen said.
During the previous presidential term, Yameen was handed an 11-year prison sentence over alleged bribery in the lease of Vaavu Aarah as part of the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) corruption scandal. The High Court later ordered a retrial at the Criminal Court. A previous five-year prison sentence handed to Yameen had also been overturned by the Supreme Court.
Yameen was also charged over alleged corruption in the lease of Raa Fuggiri island. The trial is ongoing at the lower court. But a hearing has not been held recently despite the allocation of a building in Hulhumale' to resolve space constraints faced by the Criminal Court.
