Ihusaan unsure of inquiry timeline, says no agency reported using database to boost PNC membership count

It has come to light that Minister of Homeland Security and Technology Ali Ihusaan, was unaware of the date when the MP for South Galolhu constituency Meekail Ahmed Naseem submitted an inquiry.

The inquiry submitted by MP Meekail was: “given that it has been revealed that people's identities have been misrepresented and membership forms for the main ruling People's National Congress (PNC) have been filled using the database of the Department of National Registration (DNR) under the Ministry of Homeland, Security and Technology, what measures are being taken to further protect people's personal information? Have any actions been taken against senior officials of the home ministry who signed as witnesses on inauthentic forms?”.

In response to the inquiry, the home minister said that a very detailed answer to the question had already been given in the People’s Majlis on the day of the no-confidence motion. Ihusaan also remarked that it is problematic when some lawmakers forget these kinds of answers.

Ihusaan said that it is not an established fact by any state institution that personal information of citizens has been leaked and people have been added to any political party using the DNR database under the home ministry. However, upon investigation, it has been confirmed and found that since 2014, such data under state custody has been leaked and various political entities have used the information for political work.

The minister said that a lot of work has been done regarding the issue, including ensuring that system access logs are in place. He also said that a penetration test has been conducted on the system and the system has been patched. The minister said that signatures have been incorporated into the APIs given to the systems, and logins will be traceable in the future.

In addition to this, it was been ensured that physical access to data is only given to employees to the extent officially required for their work. The minister also said that under President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's digitalization policy, work has begun to strengthen the country's eFaas service under the name 'Maldives 2.0', enhancing digital identity and establishing it as the identity to be used for transactions in the Maldives in the future.

In response to the minister's response, MP Meekail said that the inquiry he submitted for the minister was submitted in January, long before the minister's no-confidence motion and that therefore, he was bringing this to the minister's attention.

The no-confidence motion against Minister Ihusaan was scheduled in the People’s Majlis and he was given the opportunity to respond on 25 February 2025. The revelation that the DNR database was being used to fill forms for PNC came to light, and MP Meekail submitted the question regarding this on 14 January 2025. According to parliamentary rules, if a question is submitted, the notice period is 14 days. However, MP Meekail was given the opportunity to ask his question after nearly five months had passed.