State Minister charged with misconduct, five Ministers submitted as witnesses

State Minister of the Tourism Ministry Dr. Ahmed Solih has been charged with misuse of official capacity.

The Minister is charged with issuing letters stating that no investigations were being conducted by the Presidential Asset recovery Commission regarding specific islands, despite having good prior knowledge of such investigations into the islands and permitting the amendment of a sub-lease of another lagoon. The Minister also informed a lessee that there were no reservations in the sub-lease of the lagoon.

The Minister, during today’s hearing, denied the charges against him. 

State prosecution submitted two legal officers of the Tourism Ministry as witnesses as well as some transactions and memos and communication between Solih and the lessee as well as the Asset Commission and the Ministry were presented as evidence.

Witnesses submitted by Minister Solih include Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer, Transport Minister Aishath Nahula, Economic and acting Tourism Minister Fayyaz Ismail, Planning Minister Mohamed Aslam, and Science and Technology Minister Maleeh Jamaal. Former Tourism Minister Ali Waheed, President’s Office State Minister Ali Shiyam, Asset recovery Commission President Ahmed Assad, as well as four employees of the Ministry, were submitted as witnesses by Minister Solih. Evidence in the form of information pertaining to the island and lagoon were submitted by the Minister.

The presiding judge Ibrahim Ali said that a decision on the witnesses and evidence would be made in the next hearing.