PNC prepares to oust Deputy Speaker Nazim after he refuses to resign

The ruling People’s National Congress (PNC)’s parliamentary group gathered enough signatures on Wednesday to file a no-confidence motion against Parliament’s Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim after he refused to step down voluntarily.

The Dhiggaru constituency representative, who was pulled in late April from key parliamentary committees he sat in, was kicked out at around 06:00 am Wednesday from a WhatsApp group for PNC parliamentarians managed by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.

Multiple parliamentarians from the PNC confirmed to Sun that the party has decided to oust Nazim from his position as Deputy Speaker.

They have gathered enough signatures to file a no-confidence petition against Nazim.

A senior parliamentarian from the party told Sun that Nazim was instructed to resign. He said that the party decided to file a no-confidence motion to force him out after he refused to resign.

PNC has yet to make any official comment regarding why Nazim was kicked out of the WhatsApp group, or why he is being ousted from his position.

Ibrahim Falah, the leader of PNC’s parliamentary group, has not responded to requests seeking a comment, despite repeated messages and phone calls.

Nazim was also not immediately available for comment.

A no-confidence petition against the Deputy Speaker needs the endorsement of 24 parliamentarians to be filed with the Parliament – an easy feat for the PNC, which holds a supermajority in the Parliament with 75 out of 93 seats.

The push to remove Nazim from his position as Deputy Speaker comes with the government preparing to submit an amendment to the Political Parties Act, declaring the procedure for removal of parliamentarians.

The move comes after the Supreme Court decided on April 29 that there was no basis to annul the contentious anti-defection clauses written into the Constitution in 2024 that empower political parties to unseat parliamentarians.

Nazim now risks losing his Parliament seat if he resigns from or is dismissed or expelled from the PNC.

The no-confidence motion comes after Nazim was pulled on April 21 from the Public Accounts Committee and the Security Services Committee (241 Committee) – the most powerful committees of the legislative assembly.

The Parliament’s official website shows Nazim was replaced in the key committees by other PNC lawmakers. However, the changes were not announced at the Parliament as is standard procedure, and the ruling party offered no explanation for the decision.

Nazim had been highly active in the two committees from which he was pulled, leading key inquiries, including the one into the corruption allegations against the Police Cooperative Society (POLCO).

Changes to committee compositions by parties are often because of political reasons.

One such change was when Central Hithadhoo MP Ahmed Azaan Marzooq was pulled from the Public Accounts Committee and the Security Services Committee in March 2025 after major differences in opinion with the government saw him violate three-line whips issued by the PNC’s parliamentary group. He was appointed back to the committees five months later, in August 2025.