The political crises in Maldives have deepened further recently. The country’s main opposition party - the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) mulls an impeachment motion against President Mohamed Muizzu in the People’s Majlis (The Parliament).
MDP, which has 44 members strength in the 80-member People’s Majlis, appears to have joined forces with the Democrats in a breakaway faction with 13 seats, against the ruling People's National Congress (PNC).
What is the Opposition doing?
Meanwhile, Opposition Jumhooree Party leader Qasim Ibrahim has called on President Mohamed Muizzu to formally apologize to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his remarks after the China trip.
Qasim Ibrahim demands that President Muizzu must apologize to the Indian Prime Minister and the public to improve India-Maldives diplomatic relations. All the opposition parties in the Maldives are deeply dissatisfied with the government led by President Muizzu.
Opposition parties are working on an impeachment motion against the government of Muizzu, who is known to be pro-China. They are trying to gather signatures on the resolution.
Other hand, the Parliament voted this week to add four ministers to the cabinet of pro-China President Muizzu. Only one was approved by parliament. Three were rejected.
The No-Confidence Motion
In its ‘tit for tat’ strategy, the ruling MDP moved a no-confidence motion against the Speaker and Deputy Speaker. The government and the opposition members clashed in the Parliament over the resolution of cabinet expansion.
Two members of the house were injured in the incident. With these developments, the MDP, along with its ally the Democrats decided to move a no-confidence motion against Muizzu. In the 80-member House, the MDP has 44 members and the Democrats 13.
After facing setbacks in the Parliament, the government has approached the Supreme Court for changes in the rules of Parliament regarding the impeachment process. Incumbent Attorney General Ahmed Usham has filed a constitutional case in the Supreme Court. He, however, refused to divulge further details.
Political Violence
Amid political turmoil, the Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem, who was appointed by the opposition, was brutally stabbed in the Male city. Officials said that Shameem's left hand was seriously injured.
The attack is creating more tension at a time of deepening political crisis, with Shameem appointed as public a prosecutor by then-President Ibrahim Soli in 2019, when the MPD was in power. Shameem's tenure is till this November.
What does the Constitution Say?
Under the Maldivian constitution, the president and vice president can be removed from office by a two-thirds majority of the total number of MPs. That means if 58 out of 87 MPs in the current session of the People's Majlis want, they can remove Muizzu from the government.
According to the report released in this week, the opposition party Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) is seeking to bring impeachment against Mohamed Muizzu. After recent turmoil in the country’s politics, the opposition MDP currently has a majority in the Parliament.
The MDP is currently holding the upper hand as the main opposition party in parliament. Seven members of the ruling PLC had resigned to become ministers. After this, the total number of MPs was reduced from 87 to 80.
Meanwhile, the government changed the rules of impeachment. Earlier, a vote of two-thirds of the total members was required for impeachment. However, according to the new rule, two-thirds of the votes will be counted based on the number of members present in Parliament.
In such a situation, 54 MPs can remove the president. The opposition MDP has 44 MPs and also gained support from the allay Democrats (13 members). Now opposition can remove the president. According to reports, the MDP has secured enough signatures to bring the impeachment motion.