Malé, Maldives – MP of Maradhoo Constituency, Ibrahim Shareef has accused Speaker of the Parliament, Former President Mohamed Nasheed of bullying.
MP Shareef said this follwoing the actions of the Speaker Nasheed when a procedural issue was taken, after the answer given to his question by the Housing Minister, Mohamed Aslam in the parliament sitting today.
MP Shareef had asked for the date at which the service of the already built water and sewerage systems in Maradhoo and MaradhooFeydhoo will start. Shareef had also asked about the date for the start of the land reclamation and making roads in his constituency.
Minister Aslam had answered by saying that the roads in Maradhoo and MaradhooFeydhoo need to be resurfaced due to the poor work done before. He also said that work was ongoing on the laying of pipes and resurfacing of roads, and that other services will follow. Minister Aslam further added that the land reclamation and road construction will take place with India’s help and that 4 parties have been prequalified, and that the project is now in tender process.
I believe that watching ‘Rahvehi Fathis’ will give a clear idea of the status of all the ongoing projects in islands. We have just recently given all the information, while answering the questions of your fellow Addu City council members. I am pretty sure that all the members will have watched it.
Housing Minister, Mohamed Aslam
After the Minister made this statement, Speaker Nasheed agreed with Minister Aslams answer and said that it was of utmost importance for members to listen and read news and reports.
Following this, a procedural issue was taken by MP Shareef in which he said that the Constitution and the guidelines of the parliament state that the questions made by members should be answered by the ministers.
Immediately after MP Shareef said this, Speaker Nasheed repeatedly called out to MP Shareef to stay seated and had cut his microphone sound. President Nasheed said that members can only speak when given the permission to do so while MP Shareef kept on repeating that the answers to the questions of members cannot just be given by watching ‘Rahvehi Fathis’, and that answers need to be given in parliament floor.
The Speaker of the Parliament should also act within the rules of the Parliament.
Ibrahim Shareef, MP of Maradhoo Constituency
Minister Aslam added that he had indeed given answers to the questions made by MP Shareef. MP Shareef has later tweeted that bullying him does not affect him personally but that it affects the people of Maradhoo, whom he is representing.
This was not the first time that arguments have been flared between member Shareef and Speaker Nasheed on the parliament floor. Speaker Nasheed had even outed MP Shareef from the parliament floor.
