The Parliament's General Purposes Committee yesterday decided to grant Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim 10 minutes to respond to the no-confidence motion seeking his removal from office.
A no-confidence motion against Nazim, who has held significant influence within the current administration, was submitted to Parliament last week with the signatures of 73 MPs of the ruling People's National Congress (PNC).
During the General Purposes Committee meeting held to determine the time allocated for the debate, the committee’s Vice Chairperson and Holhudhoo MP Abdulla Sattar Mohamed from PNC proposed a total debate time of one hour. This includes 10 minutes for Nazim to present his defense and 50 minutes for floor debate among members.
Arguing that 10 minutes was insufficient for a response, Mavashu, MP Ahmed Shakir, from the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), proposed granting Nazim 20 minutes. His proposal suggested 10 minutes for an opening statement before the debate and another 10 minutes for a closing statement. However, this proposal failed to receive support.
The PNC’s proposal was passed with the support of five out of the seven members present. No members voted against the motion.
PNC accuses Nazim of undermining parliamentary interests through bias
The PNC has filed a motion to remove Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim, signed by 73 MPs, accusing him of political bias and undermining parliamentary integrity. Nazim has been stripped of committee seats and removed from government communication groups. This follows reports of a serious criminal investigation by the Maldives Police Service.
“The Deputy Speaker has repeatedly abused his position for undue influence, incited discord, and acted with clear bias in a manner that undermines the interests of the Majlis. Furthermore, he has demonstrated political prejudice in all parliamentary proceedings, encouraged the disruption of legislative harmony, and abdicated his official responsibilities,” the no-confidence motion stated.
This came after the Maldives Police Service compiled an intelligence report on Nazim. He has also been removed from the official WhatsApp group used for communication among PNC parliamentary members.
