Parliament approves appointment of PNC Registrar Shakeel as EC President

The People's Majlis has approved the appointment of Mohamed Shakeel as the President of the Elections Commission.

In a parliamentary vote held on Tuesday, 51 members voted in favor of granting approval to Shakeel, while 8 members voted against.

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu nominated Shakeel for the position of Commission President yesterday. Following the reading of the President's letter during yesterday's parliamentary session, the matter was referred to the Committee on Independent Institutions for review, before being brought to a vote in today's sitting.

The position of President of the Elections Commission has become vacant following the resignation of Fuad Thaufeeq from his post as a member of the commission.

The President appointed Mohamed Shakeel as a member of the Elections Commission on the 24th of this month.

Shakeel most recently served as the Managing Director of the Maldives Hajj Corporation. In addition to previously holding the positions of Director General and member of the Commission, it is also noted that he most recently served as the Registrar of the ruling People's National Congress (PNC).

As Shakeel is appointed to the highest position within the Elections Commission—the body mandated to ensure fair and transparent elections—it is noteworthy that he has been a vocal critic of the main opposition party, the MDP, on social media. Furthermore, during the previous MDP administration, he was an outspoken supporter of the "India Out" campaign led by the then-opposition. During that period, he was observed frequently criticizing both the Indian government and the Maldivian administration in a derogatory manner.

It is noteworthy that despite various corruption allegations surfacing during Shakeel’s tenure as Managing Director of the Hajj Corporation, no investigations were ever conducted into these matters.