The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has requested the police to begin an investigation after accusing President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu of money laundering through the Maldives Media House which rented an office space to the National Social Protection Agency (NSPA).
In a letter addressed to the police on Sunday, the main opposition party said Maldives Media House had rented several floors from Mahchangolhi Seeraazeege building. They were rented to establish the company's office, operate its TV station and rent out to a third party.
The six-month advance payment for the floors was settled in cash, the letter said.
"The transactions actually conducted in the guise of renting office space to run NSPA's office were to cover the running costs of MMTV which is connected to President Muizzu. Although NSPA announced that it had decided to cancel the agreement due to criticism, the offence defined in the law has been committed," the letter said.
The monthly rent for the NSPA office space is MVR 580,000. That is MVR 34.8 million for five years. The agreement between NSPA and Maldives Media House has now been cancelled.
Abdulla Zahir who manages Muizzu's private residence Maafannu Dhimyath is the owner of Maldives Media House. MDP said he had no experience in business when such a large investment was made under his name.
As the transactions were conducted under his supervision, MDP alleged that it was an act of money laundering by President Muizzu and requested a formal police investigation into the matter.
MDP has also filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to investigate the corruption involved in the transaction.
NSPA first remained silent after the issue was flagged on social media and reported by news outlets. The agency then threatened action for spreading false news. But the matter was later filed to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
