Malé, Maldives – The President’s Office on Sunday, opened up to applications for the Information Commissioner’s post for the third time.
The Information Commissioner’s Office was established on July 13, 2014, as per Article 43 (a) of the RTI Act. The information commissioner is mandated with the enforcement of the RTI Act – the law defines the right to access and obtain information in any state institution and encourages the widest circulation of information available at state institutions. The also mandates for a new commissioner to be appointed within 60 days of the vacancy.
The position has been vacant since March 21, 2021.
Application forms for this round will be accepted to the President’s Office on the 12th and 13th of July, between 10:30 and 12:30.
Applicants requirements:
- Must be over 35 years old and must not have a criminal record of bribery, or of something for which there are punishments stated in Islamic Shari’a.
- Must have at least a first degree and have 7 years of work experience. Additionally, the one who is selected to the Information Commissioner’s post must not fulfill another job along with that of the Information Commissioner.
- Must not be currently fulfilling a job elected by the Constitution, or political post and must not be a member of a political party and must not engage in political activities.
Following the resignation of Hussain Fiyaz Moosa on March 21, 2021, to work at his own online news website, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih sent three names to the parliament on April 25. The names are Shihaam Mohamed Waheed, Ahmed Aahid Rasheed and Mariyam Aleem. In addition to these three names, those who had applied for the job were also sent to the parliament for the Parliament Committee on Independent Institutions to carry out the evaluations and interviews.
The President’s Office once again, opened up for applications on June 2nd, announcing a the latest date for applications as June 13. However, no applications were received for the post. This is why, the President’s Office has now opened up for applications for the third time.
However, after thorough evaluations and interviews from the committee, the committee stated in its report, that none of the candidates for the post received sufficient votes for them to be sent to the parliament. Subsequently, none of the names sent by the President were approved and the Information Commissioner’s post remained vacant.
