President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu appointed Abdul Azeez Jamal Abu-Bakr, who previously served in the position, as the Information Commissioner today.

The People's Majlis passed its approval to appoint Azeez to the post last month. Azeez, who until now served as a State Minister at the Heritage Ministry, was also the first Information Commissioner appointed under the Right to Information Act.

He stepped down from the position upon the expiry of his term as Information Commissioner in July 2019. He had also previously served as the Member of Parliament for the Maavah constituency. Additionally, he worked at the Dhivehi Academy and authored several books on language.

The five-year term of the previous Information Commissioner, Ahid Rasheed, had expired.

The Information Commissioner is an independent official who is directly accountable to parliament for the purposes of the responsibilities mandated under the Right to Information Act and other relevant laws and regulations.