Parliament speaker, deputy speaker on overseas trips at same time

Parliament’s speaker Mohamed Nasheed and deputy speaker Eva Abdulla are out on trips overseas at the same time.

Opening the parliamentary sitting Wednesday, the Parliament’s secretary-general Fathimath Niusha announced that Nasheed was on an unofficial trip overseas and Eva on an official trip overseas, and that the sitting will therefore be chaired by Vilufushi MP Hassan Afeef.

Afeef has been overseeing sittings since Monday. Wednesday’s sitting marks the third consecutive meeting he has been chairing, meaning he cannot chair the next sitting.

Parliament’s regulations dictates that in situations where both the speaker and deputy speaker are unavailable, sittings will be chaired by the longest-serving parliamentarian.

Regulations dictate that five long-serving parliamentarians must be picked to fill in for the speaker and deputy speaker. However, each parliamentarian can only chair up to three consecutive sittings.

The five MPs picked to fill in are:

1. Afeef
2. Maradhoo MP Ibrahim Shareef
3. Dh. Meedhoo MP Ahmed Siyam Mohamed
4. North Hithadhoo MP Mohamed Aslam
5. Maamigili MP Qasim Ibrahim

Therefore, the next sitting will be chaired by Shareef if Nasheed and Eva remain unavailable.