Deputy Speaker Nazim’s ouster the only item in the agenda during Parliament’s session extension

It has been revealed that the Parliament postponed its recess to conduct no other work save for one; the no-confidence motion submitted against Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim by members of his own party, the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC).

The motion against Nazim, endorsed by 73 lawmakers from his party, was submitted to the Parliament on Thursday, the same day the legislative assembly had been set to wrap up the first sitting of this year and go into recess.

But Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla proposed extending the session to the end of May, citing a need to complete “important pending work during this session.”

The PNC used its supermajority to pass the motion by its chairperson with a majority vote of 58-11.

However, the Parliament has not held any sittings or committee meetings this week.

A meeting scheduled by the General Purposes Committee for 04:00 pm Wednesday will mark the first time for the Parliament to conduct any work since it extended the session.

The agenda for the meeting is deciding the duration of debate time in the no-confidence motion – both for Nazim himself and the rest of the Parliament.

It is therefore highly likely the Parliament will be holding the no-confidence vote against Nazim during the ongoing session.

The Parliament’s Secretariat has not provided a reason for the lack of sittings this week, despite repeated phone calls and text messages.

Nazim, who was pulled in late April from key parliamentary committees he sat in, was kicked out at around 06:00 am May 13 from a WhatsApp group for PNC parliamentarians managed by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu. The party made the decision to remove the Dhiggaru representative from his position as Deputy Speaker during a parliamentary group meeting the same day.

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

The motion accuses Nazim of repeatedly abusing his office to create strife and disharmony within the Parliament. It also 

However, it does not mention any specifics.