Meeting with central bank governor dropped from committee’s agenda

The Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, which had summoned Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA)’s governor Ali Hashim and two other top state officials for a meeting on Monday, has dropped the meeting with the central bank chief from its agenda.

The committee had summoned Hashim, along with Auditor General Hussain Niyaz and Commissioner General of Taxation Hassan Zareer, for a meeting at 11:00 am, “to clarify some information.”

The Parliament has not responded to messages seeking a comment on why the meeting with Hashim was dropped.

The Public Accounts Committee had decided last week to recommend Hashim’s dismissal to President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, after accusing him of derelict of duty.

Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla directed the committee to review the motion on Tuesday.

The no-confidence motion against Hashim was submitted on July 1 by Ahmed Nazim, the deputy speaker of Parliament, and representative of the Dhiggaru constituency. He has accused Hashim of failure to perform his duties as the head of the country’s central bank.

Nazim said that MMA had failed employ an effective monetary policy despite the economy going downhill.

Article 6 of the Maldives Monetary Authority Act states that both the governor and deputy governor of MMA shall be appointed by the president, under advisement of the Parliament. 

Once the committee finishes its review, the motion will be announced by the speaker at the floor, after which Hashim will receive five days to prepare a response.

Hashim was appointed as the governor of MMA on September 8, 2019, during the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) administration, which held office from 2018-2023. He also served as finance minister from 2008-2010 during the first MDP administration.