The parliament has unprecedentedly summoned a cabinet minister to its session today.
Parliamentarians had questioned Environment Minister Thoriq Ibrahim over the ministry’s development projects.
Thoriq had made comments that strengthened allegations that there are discrepancies between its projects and the annually allocated budget, after MPs questioned him about ongoing projects that were not included in the ministry’s budget for this year.
MP Abdulla Riyaz, who represents Kimbidhoo Constituency of Thaa atoll, asked him about planned coastal defence projects in Vaandhoo, in the same atoll. Minister Thoriq said that the government is yet unsure when the project for Vaandhoo will begin, and that the process is at a halt because the project was not included in the ministry’s budget for 2017.
While the project for Vaandhoo, and relevant funds, were allocated in the state budget for both 2014 and 2015, parliamentarians had expressed discontent and further inquired as to why the project is not underway already.
Minister Thoriq responded to this by saying that the project had to be omitted as the ministry’s expenses in said years had risen too high.
While the 2017 budget does not account for the Vaandhoo project, the Environment Minister pursued it under its Public Sector Investment Programme.
Ibrahim Solih, the leader of opposition Maldivian Democratic Party’s parliamentary group, said that it is unsettling that projects and funds given to state branches are mismanaged – with projects included in one budget are not pursued and are then omitted from the other.
Opposition MP Anaara Naeem had asked why development projects, which go through scrutiny before being included in the budget, are not pursued.
“There is a lot of research that goes into this, into a project before funds are assigned to it, then why does it just disappear? Why is it not pursued and why are funds clearly cut out for this purpose spent in other manner leaving expenses too high to be spared on projects they were initially meant for” she said.
