While the government has been accused of influencing the Prosecutor General (PG)’s office, 35 of its workers either resigned or were dismissed last year.
The employees who left include 17 prosecutors and legal officers, some of whom had questioned the independence of the PG’s office.
The PG’s office stated that 21 of the employees had resigned, which is an increase from 2016 in which 11 resigned, two employees had been dismissed on grounds of liability, while an employee in 2016 was dismissed for facing legal allegations.
This has resulted in the PG’s office hiring more employees: 59 employees were hired in 2017, which includes 28 lawyers. The current staff now consists of 162 employees.
Meanwhile, PG Aishath Bisham has recently been embroiled in a controversy after a photo of her leaving the President’s Office surfaced on social media. The photo shows Bisham, a former legal advisor of President Abdulla Yameen, waiting for her car outside the President’s Office, with Home Minister Azleen Ahmed. This has caused former attorney generals Husnu Suood and Dhiyana Naeem and others to question her integrity.
Our constitution prohibits PG to discuss individual cases with the President and members of his cabinet. In 2008, PG's post was separated from AG's office specifically to make the prosecution FREE from executive/political influence. pic.twitter.com/iBSQ1WQwkJ
— Husnu Al Suood (@hsuood) March 24, 2018
Why is the Prosecutor General at PO? And with the Home Minister? This undermines confidence in the Prosecutor General’s independence, especially at a time when so many opposition figures are being prosecuted on baseless, politically motivated charges. pic.twitter.com/uoVAiNzGIp
— Dhiyana (@dhiyanasaid) March 23, 2018
The Prosecutor General’s Act states that the PG should not be under coercion or influence of any person or persons when performing his or her duties.
