The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party’s (MDP) parliamentary group has agreed to submit an impeachment motion against President Mohamed Muizzu. This comes in light of the recent diplomatic tussle with ally nations such as India. Many members of the Maldivian opposition are against this move by the president of the country.
MDP, in partnership with another opposition party, The Democrats, has managed to gather enough signatures to initiate the impeachment motion. Videos available in the media showed the utter chaos inside the parliament as the ruling disposition attempted to thwart the no-confidence motion, leading to a free-for-all scuffle.
Leaders Are Objecting To The Jeopardized Relations With India
One of the MDP leaders has commented that a key reason why the motion was brought is because the current government had jeopardized relations with India, that had been an ally for years.
Notably, former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s MDP is in control of the parliament and the ruling combine – Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM). President Muizzu’s People’s National Congress (PNC) does not have a parliamentary majority.
The parliament’s regulations were revised last year which grants MDP the power to impeach Muizzu without the support of minority parties. Following the amendment’s parliamentary approval, an impeachment requires 54 votes while the current parliament session already consists of 56 MDP members.
The new amendment has also reduced the number of members required on the impeachment committee to seven. The inclusion of all parties represented at the parliament is not mandatory to be selected for the committee.
Scenes Of Scuffle Inside The Maldivian Parliament
The impeachment move comes in just about 24 hours after videos of the scuffle inside the Maldivian Parliament between pro-government MPs and opposition lawmakers went viral on social media.
The visuals shown on media showed lawmakers engaged in a fierce altercation followed by physical clashes. The government’s lawmakers of the PPM and PNC disrupted the proceeding over parliament and the speaker’s functioning.
The scuffle broke out after MDP said it had decided not to vote to approve Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, Attorney General Ahmed Usham, Minister of Housing, Land and Urban Development Dr Ali Haidarand Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed.
The ruling PPM-PNC has argued that denying the parliamentary approval to Muizzu’s cabinet amounts to obstructing the services the government provides to its citizens.
Bengali