Azaan: JSC requires urgent reforms as promised by President

Central Hithadhoo MP Ahmed Azaan Marzooq urged the government on Wednesday to submit legislature to remove politicians from and reform the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) as soon as possible, as was promised by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.

During his 2023 presidential campaign, President Muizzu pledged to change the composition of the JSC to remove politicians from the commission.

The Parliament’s Judiciary Committee approved President Muizzu’s nominee - High Court’s chief judge Hussain Shaheed - for appointment to the Supreme Court on Tuesday. The Parliament is set to take a floor vote on the nomination on Wednesday.

Speaking during the debate on the nomination in the morning, Azaan, a lawmaker from the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC), said that he believes Shaheed is competent for the role. He said that it is not just human and natural resources that a country needs for development, but also strong institutions.

“Research shows that the independence and strength of a country’s institutions also play a crucial role in a country’s development,” he said.

“In addition to appointing good judges, we also need to reform the system.”

Azaan noted that the PNC had strongly advocated for reform of JSC back when it had been in the opposition. He also noted that the then-Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) administration had also promised, but failed to change the commission’s composition.

“President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said he will not appoint politicians to the JSC. It was one of his [electoral] pledges. I am certain that this honorable Parliament does not want to do this [appoint politicians] either,” he said.

Azaan urged Attorney Genera Ahmed Usham to submit legislature to reform JSC’s composition as soon as possible as was promised by President Muizzu.

“We, the honorable members of Parliament, are ready to immediately pass such a bill,” he said.

Azaan’s remarks come with the JSC under heavy criticism after it suspended and opened investigations against three Supreme Court justices.

The suspension also came after the PNC submitted legislature to downsize the Supreme Court bench from seven to five justices - a move that followed weekslong allegations by the MDP that the government was seeking to dismiss some of the members of the top court’s bench to influence a case challenging a contentious amendment to add anti-defection provisions to the Constitution.

The constitutional amendment in question was submitted, passed and ratified in quick succession on November 20. The controversial amendment added three more circumstances where parliamentarians will lose their seat, including if they are expelled from their political party.

Former Kendhoo MP Ali Hussain, an attorney-at-law, filed a constitutional case with the top court on November 24, arguing that the amendment violates key provisions of the Constitution, as well as the basic structure doctrine.

Hearings in the case began on February 17 – nearly three months after the case was filed. The state filed a motion to have the case tossed out, arguing that the Supreme Court does not have the jurisdiction to hear it. But the bench decided on February 18 to proceed with the case, and gave the state 10 days to build their case.

The rushed passage of the judicature billl on February 26 came less than one hour ahead of a hearing scheduled at the Supreme Court regarding a request for an injunction to suspend the enforcement of the anti-defection clauses.

But shortly before the hearing had been set to begin at 11:00 am, the JSC announced that three Supreme Court justices – Husnu Al-Suood, Dr. Azmiralda Zahir and Mahaz Ali Zahir – had been suspended in light of criminal investigations against them by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

The amendment to the Judicature Act requires JSC to determine two justices to be incompetent and submit their names to the Parliament within five days the legislature takes effect. And the Parliament is required to make a decision regarding their removal within seven days.

Opposition parties, including the MDP and the Democrats, questioned the timing of the bill, and accused the government of attempting to influence the country's highest judicial authority and subvert judicial independence.

Meanwhile, the Bar Council called it an "unconstitutional amendment that interferes in and influences justices."

The council stressed that the Constitution is clear that Supreme Court justices may only be removed through the Parliament, and only if the JSC find them guilty of misconduct.

The ACC has declined to disclose any details regarding the investigation against the Supreme Court justices, saying only that it followed criminal complaints against the trio. 

Ali Hussain alleges the cases against them were “manufactured” to block his constitution case – which is now stymied.

One of the suspended justices - Suood tendered his resignation March 4, after raising serious allegations of government intimidation. He has also raised the issue of the suspension of the Supreme Court justices with international organizations, including the United Nations and the Commonwealth, as well as financial agencies including World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Meanwhile, the contentious judicature bill remained unsigned for close to two weeks, and was sent back to the Parliament for reconsideration on March 11. It is currently under review by the Judiciary Committee.