Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Niuma's resignation sends Maldives into deep political crisis

The Indian Ocean island nation Maldives is reeling from a deepening political crisis ignited by the sudden resignation of Niuma Mohamed, Vice Chairperson of Maldives Film Association. In the footsteps of Niuma comes the resignation of Adam Mohamed, the president of Judicial Services Commission (JSC) and the resignation of Fathimath Shafeeqa, the CEO of Capital Market Development Authority (CMDA).

The Maldives plunged further into crisis when masked police stormed the apartment of Colonel (Retd.) Ahmed Nazim, the Minister of Defence. The police produced a search warrant and searched the apartment for two hours before leaving with evidence allegedly for an investigation regarding terrorism.

Analysts believe President Yameen Abdul Gayoom is wary of Nazim, who is also the acting minister of health, after the recent presidential elections in Sri Lanka saw the incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa defeated by his former health minister in a late bid for presidency.

It is not yet clear why Niuma, a famous actress, decided to resign, causing a shocking chain of events. Sources close to Niuma say she is heartbroken over the recent decision by Minister of Tourism Ahmed Adeeb to let her arch-rival Suneetha Ali join on stage with Priyanka Chopra when the Bollywood superstar and former Miss World visited the Maldives.