The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) parliamentary group leader and Hithadhoo MP Mohamed Aslam, has indirectly accused Speaker Mohamed Nasheed for the delays in forming parliament committees.
The recent resignation of 13 MDP members has necessitated the reformation of the committees. However, it has been over two weeks since the parliament's chair declared the resigning members as independent, and the formation of the committees is still pending.
Parliament committees, crucial for legislative proceedings, have faced delays in their formation, resulting in the majority of permanent committees remaining inactive.
During the meeting held by the ruling party to announce its decision to remove Nasheed from his post as Parliament Speaker, Aslam said that according to Nasheed the formation of committees was facing delays due to disputes between the parties.
MDP however claims that so far, only one meeting had been held among the parties represented in the parliament. Aslam further said that the ruling party had already agreed with the other parties on appointing committee members based on their proportion in the parliament.
"As of now, MDP represents 64 percent of the parliament, accounting for 113 committee slots, and we have agreed to that," Aslam said. He further emphasized that regardless of any disputes from other parties, the formation of committees should adhere to the regulations set by the parliament.
The parliament consists of three committees related to parliament conduct and 14 committees related to state bodies.
The parliament regulations state that committee members should be appointed proportionally according to the parties' representation in the parliament. Aslam said that the composition of committees should be approved on the parliament floor based on the proportionality of the parties, as mandated by the regulations.
Aslam highlighted that the failure to reconstitute the committees has resulted in a complete halt to the work of the parliament.
While the parliamentary group of MDP has passed the submission of a no-confidence motion to remove Nasheed from his position as Parliament Speaker, the party had previously submitted a motion to remove Eva Abdulla, the Deputy Speaker and North-Galolhu MP. The debate on her dismissal has been scheduled for Sunday, June 11.
Several members of MDP have alleged that parliament proceedings have been intentionally halted by Nasheed in an attempt to delay Eva's dismissal from her post.
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