Ex-Minister Umar's words hold no merit, is known to fib: MP Fayyaaz

MP for Gan constituency Fayyaaz Ismail has said that former Minister of Home Affairs, Umar Naseer's words hold no merit, calling him "a nobody".

Fayyaaz made the comment in an interview to RaajjeTV's Fala Surukhee programme on Wednesday night, where he was questioned regarding the former minister's accusations towards the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP).

In a post published on social media on June 26, the day MDP celebrated its 12th anniversary, Naseer said that the MDP has been "turned into a cult by those who have taken over the party".

Noting that Naseer has previously admitted to fibbing, Fayyaaz said he does not feel the need to even provide him with a response.

Noting that Naseer had, during Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) primaries (in 2013), categorically accused President Abdulla Yameen of being the country's "criminal mind," accusing him of vote-rigging and links to criminal gangs, Fayyaaz said that he had denied all of it when summoned to parliament to testify.

Brushing off his previous accusations against President Yameen, Naseer had, in an interview to a local news outlet, said that "in a primary when you fight, it is up to the opposing candidate to show the public who the guy is".

While he had vehemently campaigned that President Yameen had been involved in the murder of the late parliamentarian Dr. Afrasheem Ali, Umar later said that "I said I have seen a suspect sitting in the office, I did not say they had any links or that Yameen met with him".

He has also said that since his appointment as Home Minister he can "confirm that there is no link of Yameen to Afrasheem's case".

He resigned from the post in June 2016, as the dispute between President Yameen and his half-brother, former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom began.