Attorney General (AG) Ibrahim Riffath has decided to appear before the Parliament of the Maldives to verbally respond to the no-confidence motion submitted against him.
The no-confidence motion against Riffath was submitted with the signatures of 13 parliamentarians pertaining to the maritime dispute between the Maldives and Mauritius. The General Purpose Committee decided to provide two hours for debates and present 30 minutes for the AG to respond to the no-confidence motion.
Some parliamentarians expressed their disapproval after Riffath exercised his constitutional right by responding to the motion in a written response. Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has since held discussions with political party leaders, which failed to solve the issue. He said that the non-majority parties and the committee believe that the AG should be present at the sitting when responding to the motion.
Furthermore, Nasheed said that the opposition coalition believes that Riffath only has the right to respond via a written response along with documentary evidence. He further said that he has decided to seek an advisory opinion from the Supreme Court in order to correctly interpret the Constitution when proceeding with the no-confidence motion.
In a letter, Riffath explained he initially responded in writing for the purpose of conveying a detailed response as many have made statements on the matter in a manner that misleads the public while the matter contains a lot of legalities. Stressing the failure to proceed with the motion with his written response, RIffath appealed to Nasheed for an opportunity to exercise his right to respond verbally.