The Attorney General's Office has submitted a bill to Parliament to amend the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) without the involvement of the Speaker of Parliament, the Member of Parliament, and the President of the Civil Service Commission.
In a tweet, Attorney General Ibrahim Riffath said that the number of JSC members will be reduced to seven.
"This proposal was developed based on feedback and consultations from the judiciary, various stakeholders, the legal profession, civil society, and the public. Its aim is to prevent the influence of other branches of government on the judiciary and find the most suitable approach to achieve this," Riffath said.
According to AG Riffath, judicial reform is a crucial pledge made by the government in the realm of social justice. He said that a total of nine relevant bills have been introduced in Parliament so far "With these two bills, this reform has been completed," the Attorney General tweeted.
Currently, the JSC is comprised of the Speaker of Parliament, a Supreme Court judge excluding the Chief Justice elected by the Supreme Court, a High Court judge, a judge elected by the lower courts, a member chosen from the parliament, the President of the Civil Service Commission, an appointee elected by the President, the Attorney General, and a lawyer elected from among the licensed practitioners in the Maldives.
Changing the composition of the JSC is one of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's presidential promises.
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