President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has said that the proposed Maldives Media and Broadcasting Bill will be rejected by the Parliament.
After a rally held on Sunday night to mark his government's first anniversary, Muizzu told a reporter that the proposed bill would be rejected in line with his policy.
"We will reject it. What's the point of accepting after I announced my view against it?" Muizzu said.
The bill was proposed by government-aligned independent MP Abdul Hannan Aboobakuru of Thulhaadhoo constituency.
Speaking at Sunday night's rally at the social centre in Male', Muizzu said he has no intention of controlling the media.
"The current proposed media bill does not have policies that I believe in. I have no intention of controlling the media. I am not trying to control the media. I want to give them even more freedom," he claimed.
Muizzu insisted that he would work to empower the media by providing government funding and providing space for their work.
However, the Maldives Media and Broadcasting Bill was proposed after Attorney General (AG) Ahmed Usham said the government was drafting a bill to merge the Maldives Media Council (MMC) and the Maldives Broadcasting Commission (Broadcom).
But the AG office said bill proposed by MP Abdul Hannan was not the one drafted by the office.
