Maldivian medical students and doctors get scammed out of tens of thousands of dollars

Scores of Maldivian medical students, as well as doctors seeking residency overseas, have lost tens of thousands of US dollars, after falling victim to Zeed International, a group of alleged scammers fronting as an international higher education consultancy firm.

The case came to public attention earlier this week, after some of the victims and their family members raised the issue over social media platforms.

The police confirmed on Tuesday that the case was reported to the agency the previous day. The police said they were investigating the case, but did not disclose any details.

Ibrahim Hafiz, the managing partner of H & Associates, which is offering pro bono legal aid to the victims, told Sun on Wednesday morning that his law firm is assisting multiple victims of an agency that is operating in the Maldives as ‘Zeed International’, ‘Zeed Consultancy’, and ‘Zeedle’.

He said that the information verified by the law firm shows Zeed has been charging Maldivian medical students triple or even quadruple the actual tuition fee charged for medical programs in by institutions in Malaysia, Philippines, and Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, the misinformation provided by the agency has led to multiple students facing visa issues, leading some of them to get deported back to the Maldives. There are also cases where the agency never actually paid universities and hospitals.

What Hafiz finds especially alarming is that Zeed has been using the Male’ office of the Cricket Board of Maldives to openly meet and lure students. The agency also has posters put up in the main roads of Male’, advertising their services.

Hafiz said that the agency has been operating in the Maldives in different names for quite some time now.

The agency recently charged doctors who applied for residency in Philippines USD 40,000, while the actual fee for the three-year program is USD 10,000.

“These cases also highlight a lack of general awareness. People want to rush overseas as soon as they get placement. They want to study because they are getting loans from the government. Because they can repay the loan once they get a pay hike after completing their education. But this is also a huge amount of money that is going out of the country,” said Hafiz.

Hafiz also highlighted on a similar case earlier this year, when 15 doctors who went to Philippines for residency via an agency had to return back to the Maldives. They flew to Philippines after paying a USD 1,500 fee for the medical licensing exam, only to find out the agency in question never paid it.

Hafiz suspects there’s a link between this particular agency and Zeed, with some of the same group of people seen in photos shared by both agencies.

Hafiz finds the lack of laws and rules in the Maldives to regulate such agencies, despite the prevalence of scams, deeply concerning.

“They are charging whatever they want. This is also damaging to the government,” he said.

“I take this opportunity to call upon the Maldives Police Service, the Higher Education Ministry, and the Sports, Fitness and Recreation Ministry, to investigate this as soon as possible and to take harsh action against these people who are manipulating the dreams and spirations of Maldivian students and their families and scamming and stealing from them.”

Zeed was not immediately available for comment regarding the allegations as the phone number listed for the company is switched off. The agency is allegedly being run by a group of Sri Lankans, with the backing of a senior Maldivian sports personality.