241 committee chair denies any influence in security breach inquiry

Chair of the parliament’s committee on national security services, MP Mohamed Aslam has refuted claims of outside influence in their inquiry to determine the security breach which led to the assassination attempt of Speaker and former President, Mohamed Nasheed.

The North-Hithadhoo constituency MP said this during a press conference held on Monday afternoon, shortly after the parliament’s committee on privileges and ethics’ decision to reject the motion against Deputy Minister of the Defence Ministry, Hassan Zameel, who signed a letter to the parliament denying its request to question individual officers. The letter said that MNDF as an institution would answer on behalf of the officers.

While this was rejected with support of Nasheed’s party, Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) members, the committee claimed that Defence Minister Mariya Didi must be held accountable for MNDF’s decision.

The privileges and ethics committee’s decision has sparked an outrage between MDP members, and an alleged screenshot of messages sent to a MDP Viber group shows Deputy Speaker Eva Abdulla accusing another MDP parliamentarian of influencing committee work on behalf the government.

However, stressing that this is a national security issue, Aslam denied any influence in the committee's work. He also emphasized that the 241 committee is not probing the May 6 terror attack, rather doing an inquiry of the security breach that led to the bomb blast targeting Nasheed.

While the parliament has received a letter from MNDF denying to send individual officers for questioning, Chief of Defence Force Major General, Abdulla Shamaal, and Vice Chief of Defence Force, Brigadier General Abdul Raheem Abdul Latheef, were questioned in the inquiry on Sunday. Other MNDF officers are being questioned on Monday as well.

Speaking on the matter at Monday’s press conference, MP Aslam said that the defence chief had assured them full cooperation from MNDF after Sunday’s meeting. He also said that they have not faced any issues of those being summoned for questioning refusing to do so thus far, including MNDF officers.

The 241 committee chair also revealed that seven people had been summoned to the committee in relation to the security breach inquiry by Monday afternoon, with five others contacted for additional information.

Nasheed was the target of a remote controlled bomb in the country’s congested capital Male’ City on May 6. He had just left his house and was about to get into his car when a bomb attached to a motorbike exploded.