Male’, Maldives – Supreme Court of the Maldives has scheduled the hearing of the Former Vice President Dr. Mohamed Jameel Ahmed’s constitutional case on his impeachment from office in July, 2015.
The Former Vice President Dr. Jameel claims that he was removed from office unlawfully and a constitutional case against the government was submitted to the Supreme Court on his behalf last year. The first hearing has been scheduled for the 19th of this month, with a bench consisting of 5 Supreme Court judges including the Chief Justice Ahmed Muthasim Adnan.
Elected as the Vice President of the Former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom in 2013, he served 2 years in office before a vote of no confidence by the Maldivian Parliament passed in July 21, 2015, allegedly because he was conspiring with opposition parties and had worked behind the scenes organizing the massive riots against the then administration in May 2015.
His impeachment was passed from parliament with 78 votes against him and only two members voting for him. The two members who voted for him are the current Minister of Youth Ahmed Mahloof and MP Ali Hussain. This was the first time a Vice President of Maldives was removed from office through a no-confidence vote until that day. The impeachment was orchestrated by the then powerful Tourism Minister Ahmed Adeed who succeeded the position later on.
While members of Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) were attempting to get him deposed, the former VP Dr. Jameel left the Maldives for supposed medical treatment to the neighboring Sri Lanka, after which he went to the United Kingdom and stayed in self exile until the 2018 presidential election was over. His reasoning for the lengthy stay in the UK was that his return to the Maldives would most likely result in his arrest, which was not uncommon for high profile politicians during that time during the Former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s administration.
The former Vice President Dr. Jameel is also a part of the current opposition. Before he jumped ship, he played a key role of bringing the current administration to power. He rejoined PPM in August of this year as an advisor after resigning from Jumhooree Party saying that he lacks the opportunity to carry out his vision for the country.
