Ventilator corruption case to be forwarded to international arbitration: Spokesperson Mabrook
Declared that it was truly tragic that such a thing had occurred while citizens were left most at need during the pandemic
Mohamed Mabrook Azeez, the Spokesperson at the President’s Office, held a press conference on Wednesday afternoon to address the ventilator corruption scandal
Spokesperson for the President's Office Mohamed Mabrook Azeez has stated that the ventilator corruption case will be forwarded to international arbitration in order to reclaim lost funds.
Speaking at a presser held by the President's Office, Spokesperson Mabrook stated that the issue was significant and was being given top-priority by the government at this time. Mabrook noted that the government had been very transparent with revealing information pertaining to the case with the Ministry of Finance, and that they had made no progress in establishing a timeline despite their efforts. As such, Mabrook revealed that the Attorney General was now preparing to submit the case to arbitration, adding that under international trade law, the arbitration would take place in the Maldives.
Spokesperson Mabrook went on to confirm that an international arbitrator would be assigned to the case.
Speaking at the press conference, Mabrook expressed hopes that the state would be able to reclaim the funds lost due to corruption in acquiring ventilators for citizens during a time of critical need amid the pandemic. Mabrook also noted that while Dubai's Executors General Trading was a UAE company, that Maldives and the UAE were both part of a New York treaty which would support the recovery of the lost funds. Mabrook added that no discrimination would be tolerated between locals and foreigners when investigating the case.
The President's Office has previously stated that they had taken the lead in initiating inquiries in the ventilator corruption case, by forwarding the case to the Anti-Corruption Commission and Maldives Police Service for further investigation.
