Parliament elects Abdul Raheem as new Speaker, Nazim as Deputy Speaker

The Parliament on Tuesday elected Fonadhoo MP Abdul Raheem Abdulla (Adhurey) as the new Speaker, and Dhiggaru MP Ahmed Nazim as the new Deputy Speaker.

The 93 members elected to 20th parliamentary assembly took their oath of office in a ceremony held at the Parliament at 09:00 am. Their oath was administered by Chief Justice Muthasim Adnan.

The new members were elected in a tightly contested elections on April 21, which saw the main ruling People’s National Congress (PNC) achieve a sweeping victory.

The inaugural sitting was held at 10:15 am, during which the members elected the new Speaker and Deputy Speaker in a secret ballot. The sitting was chaired by Meedhoo MP Ahmed Siyam Mohamed.

The PNC promptly nominated Abdul Raheem as the Speaker, and Nazim as the Deputy Speaker – as recommended by the party’s leader, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu.

Meanwhile, the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) nominated South Hithadhoo MP Ibrahim Nazil as the Speaker, and Maradhoo MP Ahmed Didi as the Deputy Speaker.

Abdul Raheem was elected as the Speaker with a majority vote of 71. Nazil received 14 votes. Seven of the votes were rejected as invalid, and Siyam, who was chairing the sitting, did not vote.

The new Speaker, Abdul Raheem had previously served two terms at the Parliament, as a member of the 17^th and 18^th parliamentary assemblies.

He currently serves as the chairperson of PNC.

Meanwhile, Nazim was elected as Deputy Speaker with a majority vote of 80. MDP’s Didi received 12 votes.

There were no invalid votes, and Siyam, again, chose to sit out of the vote.

Like Abdul Raheem, Nazim, too had previously served two terms at the Parliament, and had also served as Deputy Speaker of the 18^th parliamentary assembly. However, he lost his seat after he was convicted of corruption and sentenced to 25 years in prison.

The sentence was later overturned upon appeal.

The PNC had also decided to make Inguraidhoo MP Ibrahim Falah its parliamentary group leader, which makes him the new parliamentary majority leader. Meanwhile, MDP had elected Nazil as its parliamentary group leader, which makes him the new minority leader.

The PNC holds a supermajority in the new parliamentary assembly with 75 out of 93 seats. This includes 67 seats it won in the elections and the seats of the eight independents who joined the party in the weeks after.

MDP, which held a huge majority in the last parliamentary assembly, suffered a heavy blow in last month’s elections, winning just 12 seats. Meanwhile, Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) holds two seats, while Jumhoory Party (JP) and Maldives National Party (MNP) hold one seat each.

Only 11 out of the 87 members of the last assembly retained their seats. Many of the former lawmakers decided not to run for re-election.