“Major losses” to Maldives under President Yameen's Regime !!!

State of Maldives has been ordered to pay USD 15 million in damages to Malaysian company Nexbis by Singapore International Arbitration Center (SIAC) over dissolution of contract between Nexbis and Maldives Immigration to build a border control system in Maldives.

Nexbis, a Malaysian-based venture that was contracted to manage the border control system (BCS) of the atoll state.

In successive months, two foreign companies have been paid compensation for abrupt cancellation of contracts by President Yameen's government, citing various reasons. First it was GMR, an Indian infrastructure company, that was awarded a project to upgrade and manage Ibrahim Nasir International Airport; and then it was Nexbis, a Malaysian-based venture that was contracted to manage the border control system (BCS) of the atoll state.

Now what puzzles a common man of Maldives are: What reasons were cited by the Maldivian government for the ouster? How many of them were genuine and how many of them were motivated – politically, economically ? What were the actual reasons behind the ouster and what are the consequences?

Overall, three broad reasons were offered by the government of Maldives to oust either of the companies. The first issue was on the transparency of the contract. The official government record states that the contract “was signed under dubious conditions”. However, the fact of the matter is that the contract was awarded through an international bidding process overseen by the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The matter of fact is that the project followed international best practices at each step of the bidding process to ensure the highest degree of competitiveness, transparency and credibility of the process.

The second reason cited was that the contracts were “illegal”. The IFC has contended this by observing that the contracts “complied with Maldivian laws and regulations”. The Maldivian Attorney General in his legal opinion clearly stated that the contracts agreements “do not violate any provision of the Constitution of the Republic of Maldives or any law regulation, rule or decree...”

The third reason was that the projects were “against the national interest” of the Maldives. It is highly unlikely that the abrogation of the contract served any national interest of the Maldives.  Significantly, when the projects got underway, it had become some of the biggest FDI into the Maldives; that too, at the time when Maldives' economic is going downspiral.

The move has also sent negative signals to prospective investors in the Island; in addition to creating jitters and uncertainty amongst the present ones. As reasons offered for the termination of the contract appear unimpressive, one tends to look for actual motivations. In the process, one cannot miss local political and electoral factors.

US$271 million  to GMR, $15 million to Nexbiz,a few more cases pending, $72 million stolen...remaining islands given without bidding...is there anything left?

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Justice Manipulated behind close doors

The court hearing to announce the final verdict on two journalists of Raajje TV Mohamed Visam and Leevan Ali Nazeer, who were arrested for allegedly obstructing police, on Monday afternoon will be held behind closed doors.

The decision to close the doors on the hearing was announced after people had submitted their names to observe the trial. The reason for the abrupt decision is unclear.

The  Criminal Court declared RaajjeTv journalists guilty on police obstruction charges, sentencing to be held on Jan. 24 2017.  The prosecution requests a jail term of four months and 24 days for the journalists. Meantime Maldives Police pushed media and family of  journalists, claiming that it was an "illegal gathering" 

Mohamed Wisam, Leevan Ali Naseer  are the first Maldivian journalists to be prosecuted since the country adopted a democratic constitution in 2008.

Their prosecution stands in stark contrast to the lack of justice for crimes committed against the press, including the disappearance of Maldives Independent journalist Ahmed Rilwan, the arson attack on Raajje TV, the near-fatal beating of the station’s former news head, Asward Ibrahim Waheed, and the mass death threats sent via text messages to journalists.

When world marks the international day to end impunity for crimes against journalists, human rights groups have urged the Maldives to practice what it preaches internationally, describing the country’s support for the UN resolution while cracking down on the press at home, as “dark comedy.

Maldives is ranked 112th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2015 World Press Freedom Index.

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Viewing Ambassador of Maldives to Japan, Mohamed Hussain ‘Mundhu’, political timeline

 

 Appointed as Ambassador of Maldives to Japan

Former Presidential Affairs Minister Mohamed Hussain ‘Mundhu’ Shareef has been appointed to head the Maldives’ diplomatic mission in Japan.

Arrest

October 2015 Mohamed Hussain Shareef ‘Mundhu,’ former presidential affairs minister, had been arrested in Malaysia along with Hamid Ismail, an influential businessman related to jailed Vice President Ahmed Adeeb on suspicion of links to a plot to assassinate President Abdulla Yameen.

Released

Ex-cabinet minister Mohamed Hussain Shareef was released from police custody under unofficial and undisclosed agreement with President Yameen

Resigned

Shareef resigned from the cabinet in October when he was told by President Yameen to stay home in an apparent purge of former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb’s supporters from the government.

Corruption

Shareef was involved in corruption scam of MVR 3.7million (US$24,000) catering contract awarded by the president’s office for a state banquet to mark the Maldives’ Golden Jubilee of Independence.

In February 2016 close of inquiry

The watchdog Anti-Corruption Commission decided to close an inquiry against a former cabinet minister, citing lack of evidence and additional “reasons that cannot be disclosed to the press.” An official stated, on condition of annonimity, that orders came directly from President Yameen and implimented under pressure.

The case was returned shortly after Aishath Bisham, Shareef’s former colleague at the president’s office, was appointed Prosecutor General.

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President Yameen is determined to drown the Maldives Democracy

On Friday night, MDP Local Council Campagin rally protesting against declining Maldivian democracy, in Addu City was disrupted and forcefully stopped by the government of Yameen regime. Police in riot gear dispersed the crowd and pushed back the podium and the sound system. Several protesters were severely wounded in tussel with the local police. With Maldivians now imprisoned in their own land under barbaric regime of President Yameen, people are forced to think if this was the DEMOCRACY they fought for and won.

In December,2016 The civil court has ordered the elections commission to postpone January’s local council elections. The delay of the Local Council Elections is well planned and carried out jointly by the Government, Elections Commission and courts. With all state institutions deemed toothless and renderless by President Yameen, the whole of state machinery is now puppet of corrupt Yameen Government. Judge Ali Abdulla ruled in favour of President Abdulla Yameen.

Since November 2016 President Abdulla Yameen’s faction of the ruling party has been bribing supporters and coercing state employees to attend PPM(Y) political party rallies. State employees were threatened with dismissal and salary reductions for failure to attend the rally. Most people were reportedly given MVR500 (US$32.4) to attend the PPM(Y) rally.

Employee who works for the state owned utility company STELCO said his superiors had warned him of severe action, including dismissal, for failure to attend the PPM(Y)rallies. Employees of state-owned enterprises were given a sticker with a serial number upon entry to keep a check of their attendance in the rally. 

Maldivians, who spoke  on the condition of anonymity,  they were compelled to attend PPM(Y) political rally irrespective of the official work load that is already accumulating with tables full of files requiring their immediate attention. Another Maldivian, who works at the Maldives Ports Limited, said the company’s Chief Executive Office Mohamed Junaid “personally asked everyone to attend. He threatened us with dismissal and salary reductions if we didn’t join the rally."

The plight of Maldivians is not just restricted to lack of freedom and expression, but the whole pseudo "Free & Fair" democracy dream they are being brainwashed into believing...

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Misuse of Maldives Presidential Power & Privilege by Yameen & First Lady Fathimath Ibrahim!!!

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has stated that investigations have revealed that Abu Dhabi’s association had made the donation of USD 24,000 (MVR 370,080) to Waqf Fund on condition that half of it (MVR 185,040) be given to the Sadaqat Foundation, owned by the first lady and wife of President Yameen, Fathimath Ibrahim. 

The Maldives graft watchdog has now declared that the Waqf Fund, managed by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, has not handed over its promised share of the donation made by a private Ab Dhabi association to the Sadaqat Foundation. According to the ACC, the Islamic Ministry had cancelled its letter to the Ministry of Finance and Treasury requesting to deposit the amount for Sadaqat Foundation. The private association of Abu Dhabi had made the donation to aid Waqf Fund in conducting various religious programs in mosques during the last Islamic holy month of Ramadan. 

The commission probed the matter in the wake of a case filed by a private individual stating that Waqf Fund had transferred the amount as per the agreement. 

Similar controvercies involving the NGO Sadaqat Foundation owned by, the first lady and wife of President Yameen, Fathimath Ibrahim had sparked earlier also when on June 2016 First Lady Fathimath Ibrahim has sparked a firestorm of criticism after it emerged that a charity organization she founded (Sadagat Foundation),was distributing packets of dates gifted by Saudi Arabia to the people of the Maldives in its name.

The packets were being handed out at breakfasts organized by the Sadagat Foundation with labels stating, “With the best wishes of the Sadagat Foundation.” The plastic cover of the packet said that it was a gift from the government of the custodian of the two holy mosques King Salman bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud. 

Saudi Arabia donated around 50 tonnes of dates to the Maldives on Ramadan. Finance ministry was ordered by President Yameen to handover some ten tonnes of dates to the presidential palace. Following the order, the 500 boxes of dates were transported to a campaign office run by the first lady Fathimath Ibrahim in Malé on a truck owned by the Maldives Road Development Corporation . The embassy of Saudi Arabia in Malé has earlier spoken out in defense of the first lady of the Maldives, who has been accused of corruption repeatedly involving her NGO Sadagat Foundation, when it emerged that an NGO she founded was distributing dates gifted by the kingdom in its name. 

The Saudis defence of Fathimath could “taint the high regard” the Maldivian people have for the kingdom. This reeks of misuse of power and privilege. Saudi government should be outraged rather than trying to cover up these shameful actions. Corruption, whether it is siphoning of state funds for personal use, money laundering, or seemingly as petty as stealing thefts, should not be condoned. 

 

President Abdulla Yameen and his wife are also under fire over a historic corruption scandal involving the theft of some US$80million from state coffers. Independent MP Ahmed Mahloof was summoned to the police headquarters in early February over claims that there are millions of dollars in the first couple’s private bank accounts. 

 President Yameen and the first lady Fathimath Ibrahim, with all due respect, are working towards siphoning off millions of dollars from Maldives National Funds, showing no concern towards development and prosperity of Maldives as a nation. The first couple has devised new and innovative ways to divert International funds and donations for Maldives towards their own personal accounts. With all the state machinery, including the ACC and Judiciary, flooded with unqualified Yameen loyalist, the couple is having a free hand to rob Maldives of its finances and dignity as a independent and self-sufficient nation.

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Not “Degree” but “Good Governance” makes a “Honorable President ” !!!

Ministry of Defence and National Security in Maldives has signed an agreement with India’s Lovely Professional University for counter-terrorism awareness and training projects. The MOU signed directly b/w L.P.U. and President Yameen equips a private educational institute, teaching courses like BA, B. Com, B. Sc., BBA, MBA, etc in India to provide military training to Maldives.

 The move comes as a shock to the global audience who clearly knows inadequacy of educational university like L.P.U. to train forces for counter-terrorism. The move is drawing huge criticism from national and international audience as it is meant to fool the Maldivians to believe in false sense of security.

The Maldivians are being made to believe of being in safe hands by repeated training of its military and armed forces but the reality points to another money laundering scandal by President Yameen. The whole counter-terrorism training exercise is a bluff and the money being paid for the training is making its way into President Yameen's pockets and personal bank accounts.

 Insiders claim that the 'counter-terrorism' training deal with a private educational institute is a mask to cover exchange of money between a private university (planning to open a branch in Maldives) and President Yameen (planning to rob Maldives of its foreign exchange). Maldives national accounts are being manipulated and fabricated to show expenses whereas the money is being transferred to President Yameen's pockets.


President Yameen is also on a move to get a “Doctorate” degree from the L.P.U. to put a mask of being a just and adequately qualified leadership face in front of the people of Maldives and the global audience who are keenly watching the growth of democracy through 2018 elections. The honorary “Doctorate” degree is part of the secret agreement between a private educational institute and President Yameen.

This is not the first time President Yameen is buying degrees to glorify his public image. Even in April 2016 President Abdulla Yameen received Dr Kalam Puraskar for Excellence in Governance by a Thiruvananthapuram based private firm Dale View Group. Even though the award carries name of former Indian president but in reality it has no link to the government of India.


Message to President Yameen

A “Good President” of any nation is not primarily categorized by the educational degrees he holds or by the large personal bank deposits but by the way which he governs his country. A true leadership is not about “ruling” the citizens but “serving” its citizens. Good governance of the nation is the key to being a “Good President”. Action definitely speaks louder than False Words or Fake Degrees !!!

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Understanding People's Basic Needs

•   Prices for food staples doubled overnight
•   Maldives current crises are not just limited to severe democracy deficit
•  A political system is corrupt when it is strictly profit-driven
   
                                                
  
  
  
  Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom (born. 21 May 1959) is President of the Republic of Maldives, Head of State and Government, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and the Police. President Yameen obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Later, he obtained a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the Claremont Graduate School in Los Angeles, California. President Yameen’s reputation as a great Visionary, Efficient and Result-Oriented Executive has often been highlighted to gain public support during elections and to instill in people of Maldives a feeling of government of Republic of Maldives being in and governed by safe hands. Being the elected head of the Republic of Maldives, President Yameen is at the forefront of the implementation of democratic reforms, particularly through the legislature.

  
  

  Maldives is undergoing “severe democracy deficit” in the country, the curtailment of fundamental freedoms of expression and assembly has created an environment of fear and intimidation among people of Maldives. The lack of progress in resolving an intractable political crisis triggered by jailing of opposition and lack of crucial action that is needed to be taken at the political level by the country’s President who has influence and access to the machinery of the state. There is a dire need for political consensus in the long term, while in the short term, the government must demonstrate both the will and the leadership to help the nation emerge from severe democratic deficit. With Maldives policies deeply politicised and compromised, and disregards to the principles of natural justice or to serve the best interest of the nation as a whole. The “Great Economist”, President Yameen, is now also being accused of defaming Maldives government by the very own people who elected him to power. He has been criticized and accused of “increasingly repressive” policies and fear are being expressed on free and fair elections in 2018 which people claim “seems an increasingly distant prospect”.

  
  

  Maldives current crises are not just limited to severe democracy deficit, decline in government's foreign currency reserves is also a point of major concern. Reserves at the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) readily available for use in the foreign currency exchange market have declined tremendously, decline largely attributable to the increase in MMA’s foreign currency sales, which the central bank said was driven by a slow-down in the tourism sector and high demand for dollars ahead of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
  
  

  

  
  

  The government has struggled to meet ambitious revenue targets amid a slowdown in the tourism sector. It predicts a deficit of MVR3.4billion (US$220million) or 6 percent of GDP, but the World Bank believes the figure could be as high as 13.3 percent. The MMA says the current shortage can be attributed to both demand and supply-side factors. From the supply side, the slow-down in tourism sector has reduced dollar revenue for the economy, alongside this, increased government spending on large infrastructural projects have exacerbated the current situation in the domestic foreign exchange market. With President Yameen's “Visit Maldives Year 2016” campaign, with a goal of welcoming 1.5 million tourists to Maldives, failing to meet its target, tourism industry, backbone of Maldives economy, is on a downfall. Tourism Minister Moosa Zameer said, “There are challenges in tourist arrivals. Growth hasn’t been what we anticipated”, throwing the blame on the opposition’s alleged scaremongering about religious extremism in the Maldives. Contrary to governments belief, international tour operators suggested that years of bad press about political turmoil coupled with the dearth of mid-range hotels and introduction of “Green Tax” on top of a 12 percent tourism goods and services tax, was undermining the Maldives’ attractiveness as a global holiday destination.

  
  

  The government of Republic of Maldives headed by President Yameen are facing huge public criticism after the government announced austerity measures to rein in deficit. Moves like issuing advice for the general public to renounce traveling abroad for their holy pilgrimage Hajj as a measure to reduce the leakages of foreign currency out of the country has escalated the unrest among Islamic people of the country. Curbs are also being extended on overseas travel to seek medical treatment to prevent what government sees as “leakage of millions of dollars”. Rules have already been imposed on freeze of government appointments and an order to close government offices by 2:30pm. What comes as a major shock for people of the Maldives is the unjustified imposition of numerous new taxes and price hikes on basic commodities to fill in for the deficit. Government's policy of exploitation of its own people at the cost of building large infrastructural projects is not being digested by Maldivians. Yameen Government recent policy to cut down on food subsidy has caused outrage among Maldivians, especially as it comes in the wake of a hike in basic utilities such as electricity and fuel prices.

  
  

  People first concern themselves with meeting their basic needs; only afterwards, do they pursue any higher needs. President Yameen's recent policy to cut down of food subsidy on pretext that a majority of those who benefit from the subsidy are not its rightful beneficiaries, has created a widespread outcry among people of Maldives. Shops across the Maldives are running out of food staples as Maldivians rushed to buy rice, flour and sugar following an abrupt announcement by the Yameen government about plans to cut down food subsidies. With reported long queues outside shops in the atolls and rationing in southern Addu City, shops have now put a limit on kilos per customer. The controlled prices for rice, flour and sugar is set to double, with a kilo of rice previously costing MVR 3.98 to be sold at MVR 7.96, a kilo of sugar which cost MVR 4.5 will now cost MVR 8, and flour sold at MVR 3.5 per kilo will now be sold for MVR 5.96. President Yameen's new policy has caused an uprise in black marketing of daily essentials, with State Trading Organisation, which imports and distributes the majority of staples at prices set by the government, maintaining stand that there is no shortage. The announcement has caused outrage as it comes in the wake of a hike in fuel surcharge of MVR 0.04 on each unit of electricity already imposed from October 2016. President Yameen is also planning to introduce “Control of the Public Sector Wage Bill”, to cut down on salaries, which will result in further frustration and anger among the Maldivians.

  
  

  “For now, our stand is that we cannot afford to pay more taxes,” is the voice of most people of Maldives. The “Anti-Yameen” campaigns erupting within the country have alleged that the taxes and price hikes of basic commodities like food, fuel and electricity have little to do with the deficit, and everything to do with corrupt President Yameen's own personal greed for money to maintain his lavish lifestyles. Maldavians claim that austerity measures are a sign of fiscal mismanagement and there are no guidelines on how the collected tax is to be spent. 

  
  

  “There is now a real fear that the government may not be able to pay salaries which shows that the government has serious issues with cash flows,” says Ibrahim Ameer, a member of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party. “The government’s fiscal policy has failed. It is worsening the dollar crisis. The government is using forced T-bills to bridge the deficit, which is having a negative impact on the private sector.” President Yameen's autocratic regime is already amidst a US$ 1.6bn money laundering scam involving leasing of 59 atolls ,each for 99 years to various resort companies without inviting any bids for the same. Afterwards, President Yameen, instead of ordering probe into the allegations, put restrictions on any news related to the scam on any electronic and print media in Maldives. Massive peaceful protests and rallies demanding probe into the money laundering allegations were all crushed by violent force with people claiming that the whole system is corrupt from top to bottom, including the official administration, central bank and the judiciary system.

  
  

  With this article we would like to pass a message, on behalf of all the people of Maldives, to the President and other government officials of Republic of Maldives:

  
  

  
  

  A political system is corrupt when it is strictly profit-driven, not driven to serve the best interests of its people. A great leader must serve the best interests of the people first, not those of multinational corporations. Human life should never be sacrificed for monetary profit. There are no exceptions. In addition, a leader should always be open to criticism, not silencing dissent. Any leader who does not tolerate criticism from the public is afraid of their dirty hands being revealed under heavy light. And such a leader is dangerous, because they only feel secure in the darkness. Only a leader who is free from corruption welcomes scrutiny; for scrutiny allows a good leader to be an even greater leader.

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