Revenue Authority not a 'political weapon': Ex-President

Former President Mohamed Nasheed has on Wednesday night said that the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) is being used as a ‘political weapon’, adding that Yazeed Mohamed, Commissioner General of Taxation needs to be held accountable.

He said this in a series of posts on his official twitter account.

Nasheed, now in Sri Lanka in expectancy of the upcoming vote of no-confidence against parliament speaker Abdulla Maseeh, made these comments following MIRA’s order to feeze accounts operated by Villa Group, an enterprise founded and operated by opposition Jumhooree Party (JP) leader Qasim Ibrahim.

He said that the taxation authority’s involvement in the case is indicative of the institution being politicized.

“Businesses having their accounts frozen every time the government runs into a hurdle is indicative of MIRA’s actions being politicized” the tweet, typed out in Dhivehi said.

A letter, signed and sent on Wednesday by Fathimath Azeema – MIRA’s Director General of Enforcement, said that Villa Group’s accounts have been frozen until the corporation pays a sum owed to state over the procurement of Elaa, an uninhabited island in Thaa atoll. MIRA's enforcement policy gives Director General Azeema this authority.

The dispute over Elaa arose days after MP Qasim Ibrahim, also the longstanding representative of his native constituency, had expressed his support for the aforementioned no-confidence motion against the speaker.

An official from Villa told RaajjeMV on Wednesday that in addition to their bank accounts being frozen, the corporation has also been barred from acquiring any immigration or customs services.

Villa Group had faced a similar freeze in 2015, then due to the JP’s endorsement and involvement in a large opposition rally, which had resulted in terror charges against other opposition leaders that had fronted it.