The People’s Majlis has approved the appointment of Former Minister of Finance Ahmed Munawwar as Governor of the Maldives’ central bank, Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA).

The parliament has greenlighted his appointment as the chief of the central bank, at a time the matter has triggered severe criticism from the public.

However, parliamentarians on Tuesday voted to approve him, despite the disdain surrounding the appointment.

78 lawmakers voted in favor of appointing him.

Munawwar's appointment was greenlighted after the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee conducted an interview and decided that he was eligible for the post.

Ali Hashim was sacked from his position as the governor of the central bank on July 22.

His removal triggered a wave of criticism among the public as well as politicians and the incumbent administration of President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu drew immense condescension over the issue.

Hashim was sacked for “failing” to perform his duties, however, there have been allegations that he was sacked because he did not respond to the government's demands.

Muizzu forwarded the appointment of Munawwar as governor for parliamentary approval, under Article 6 (III) of the Maldives Monetary Authority Act.

Munawwar previously served as the Minister of Finance and currently fills the position of Advisor to the Minister of Finance.

He also served as a state minister from 2014 to 2016.

The public has been raising concerns over the massive accusations pinned against Munawwar as well, however, the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has failed to comment on it or provide any clarifications to clear his name.

ACC in 2020 sought charges against Munawwar at the Prosecutor General's Office (PG Office) in connection with the allegations against him.

However, the case was referred back to the ACC to complete the formalities that were further required in the probe.

ACC on 21 September 2020, said that it was in the process of completing the investigation in the cases against Munawwar.

Since then, there have been no comments regarding the issue, from ACC.

As such, RaajjeMV’s repeated attempts to get an official comment from ACC on the matter, were to no avail.