Speaker of Parliament does not have the authority to change the rules on President

The Parliament Office has said that the Speaker of Parliament does not have the authority to make changes to the rules on the resignation of a President, which are clearly stipulated in the Constitution.

A statement issued by the Parliament Office today states that, based on the information included in the ‘MNDF Operation Liberty Shield Report’, a letter was sent to Parliament Speaker Abdullah Shahid by the President of MDP Parliamentary Group, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, requesting him to review his decision after former President Mohamed Nasheed’s letter of resignation was presented to him and the Chief Justice.

The statement says that the Speaker of Parliament has replied to Solih’s request, indicating that he does not have the authority to change the rules on the resignation of a President, which are clearly stipulated in the Constitution.

The statement also details article 121(a) of the Constitution, which states, “The President may resign from office by writing under his hand submitted to the Speaker of the People’s Majlis, and the office shall become vacant when the resignation is received by the Speaker.”