Male’, Maldives – The Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has said that he is going to publicize some 70,000 messages which relate to the Maldives Media and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) grand corruption.
Speaking on the topic of amending the Penal Code to declare unjust enrichment as a crime, the Speaker said that the fact that those who are suspected of partaking in the MMPRC corruption still remain free without any charges raised against them by Maldives Police Service and the Prosecutor General’s Office is a big stopping point.
“I provided this Parliament with 70,000 messages. The were messages of the former Vice President of Maldives and of those close to him. And the (former) Vice President divulged so much during his confession. The connection between that and these messages are very clear.” Nasheed said.
Referring to the text messages, Nasheed detailed that the messages were submitted to the Committee on National Security Services and that each message has been filed with a unique reference number.
“It is difficult for us to look into the messages from here. So it has not been done yet. Since the 70,000 messages are in my possession, I will be publicizing these 70,000 messages for the public to see.” He said.
The MMPRC case, which surfaced in 2015, is the largest corruption scandal to rock the Maldives in history. Following initial investigations, the Auditor General’s Office disclosed that MVR 1.2 billion in state funds, acquired via island and lagoon leases, had been embezzled via the corporation, which later increased to MVR 1.4 billion after the investigation by Anti Corruption Commission (ACC).
