Justices need to be penalized for their reform roadmap: MP-elect

Moosa Siraj, lawyer and newly elected MP, has said that the Supreme Court justices should be penalized for introducing their roadmap for judicial reform.

Speaking on RaajjeTV’s Fala Surukhe show on Thursday night, Siraj said that by introducing the roadmap, the justices have exercised authority they do not have.

The Department of Judicial Administration (DJA) has stated that the Supreme Court’s roadmap was drafted with instructions from the United Nation’s Development Programme (UNDP) and after evaluating the current Maldivian legal sector.

The roadmap proposes to re-establish the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), improving the regulations on appointing, dismissing, and questioning judges, and providing easier methods for citizens to file complaints.

Speaking on RaajjeTV, Siraj said that the courts cannot be reformed from within the courthouse and accused the justices of introducing their roadmap in an attempt to stop the main ruling party’s reform agenda.

Siraj, who is a vocal supporter of judicial reform, said that the Supreme Court can give its opinions on the topic if requested by parliament but that the Maldives’ top court does not have the authority to propose a reform agenda.

Denying the claim that the Supreme Court is the guardian of the Constitution, Siraj said that the country will not be able to progress with the “corrupt” judges, since they are unlikely to change.

He said that the justices should be dismissed for influencing the lower courts, accusing people of contempt, and attempting to obtain more powers and vowed to establish an honest courthouse in the upcoming parliament.

Siraj was recently summoned to DJA for criticizing the courthouse on Twitter.