No-confidence motion against Minister Saeed scheduled for Wednesday's sitting

The no-confidence motion against the Minister of Economic Development, Transport, and Trade, Mohamed Saeed, has been scheduled for Wednesday's sitting of the People's Majlis.

Minister Saeed will be granted one hour to present his defense regarding the no-confidence motion filed against him in Parliament by 13 members of the opposition MDP. Furthermore, the Parliament's General Purposes Committee has passed a motion to allocate an additional hour for members to debate the matter, with the time distributed among political parties in accordance with Article 110 (b) of the Constitution.

The motion submitted by the MDP asserts that Minister Saeed has explicitly violated the Constitution in the performance of his cabinet duties as mandated under Article 132. It further alleges that he has neglected his constitutional obligation to remain accountable to the People’s Majlis, as required by Article 134. The motion also states that the Minister has engaged in activities prohibited for cabinet members under Article 136 of the Constitution, and consequently, he no longer retains the confidence of the Parliament.

The party has submitted six specific proposals regarding the matter.

Highlighting the continuous surge of the dollar rate on the black market and the subsequent skyrocketing of commodity prices, the MDP stated that the failure to implement any effective economic reform policies to date has led to a severe shortage of foreign currency. This lack of action has driven the black market dollar rate above MVR 21. Despite these challenges, the MDP accused the Minister of downplaying the gravity of the situation.

The complaint further alleged that Minister Saeed failed to exercise due diligence in safeguarding state assets and finances. It noted that despite the country's deteriorating fiscal situation, significant amounts of state funds and resources were expended on overseas investor forums and project inauguration ceremonies.

The report highlighted that despite pledges to establish and commence operations of the Development Bank, the institution had already incurred expenditures totaling MVR 6.56 million by the end of March last year, even though its services have yet to be launched.

Furthermore, it has been noted that the Minister has obstructed accountability to the People's Majlis. Specifically, it is alleged that after appearing before the parliament, the Minister avoided answering members' inquiries directly, opting instead to engage in irrelevant political rhetoric. The motion also asserts that the Minister has failed to protect private enterprises. It further alleges that the closure of business centers providing services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has hindered the sector's growth, and that the operations of the previously successful SME Development Finance Corporation (SDFC) have stalled due to the Minister's negligence.

Regarding the matter, the MDP further stated that while one of the primary objectives of the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act is to diversify the economy and reduce its heavy reliance on tourism, the current administration has amended the law in a manner detrimental to the state. The party alleged that the introduction of "townships" effectively relinquishes state control over certain areas of the Maldives to foreign entities, granting them extensive concessions. The motion further noted that such measures could lead to the loss of sovereign territory and potentially deprive the state of significant revenue.

Finally, the party highlighted that despite the Minister announcing several mega-projects on various occasions—claiming they would transform the nation's economic landscape—most of these initiatives have come to a standstill. In this regard, the party specifically pointed to the bunkering services, the Development Bank of Maldives, and the Maldives International Financial Centre as key examples of stalled projects.

Consequently, citing a complete loss of confidence in the Minister’s ability to fulfill his duties, the MDP has submitted a no-confidence motion against Minister Saeed. The motion was filed under Article 101(a) of the Constitution and Article 229(a) of the Standing Orders of the People’s Majlis.