Minister of Defence Mariya Ahmed Didi has highlighted the unprecedented developments and achievements made by the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) in the past four years of the administration.
Speaking at the 131st anniversary ceremony of the MNDF, Minister Mariya noted various concerns being addressed by the administration such as the increased tension between powerful countries in the Indian Ocean as well as drug and human trafficking, illegal fishing, and other criminal activities in the ocean territory of the Maldives. She also said that the administration is making efforts to stop the spread of extremism and terrorism, address climate-related disasters, and respond to fire incidents. She also emphasised that the MNDF is now deployed for more military and civil purposes.
As such, Minister Mariya said that the administration is working to identify challenges in the MNDF and implement solutions, the most important of which is increasing the military operational capabilities and providing more training opportunities to officers. She said that the MNDF has experienced a 15% increase in the number of officers and that the administration has been able to bring many grounded Coastguard vessels into operational condition, despite the challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. She added that various logistics vehicles and eight new sea ambulances have been added to the Coastguard fleet with the assistance of India.
Additionally, Minister Mariya said the administration has focused budgetary spending on the procurement of weapons and equipment needed to enhance military capacity in the past four years. She said that spending has been focused on various capacity building initiates to strengthen military intelligence, special protection, training, and building modern facilities.
Furthermore, Minister Mariya said that a military justice system was implemented two years ago to stop the punishment and dismissal of military officers without due process due to political influence. She stressed that the MNDF is legally prohibited from engaging in political activities and she advised officers to refrain from involving themselves in political affairs. She also highlighted the misuse of the armed forces by previous governments to hinder and detain judges, undermining the integrity of the judicial system. She said that President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih's commitment to upholding the rule of law and maintaining order has put an end to the use of the armed forces for spreading fear and creating disorder.
At the ceremony, President Solih presented medals to four retired generals and other servicemen and servicewomen who have distinguished themselves in service to the MNDF. The military, in its present form, was instituted on April 21, 1892, during the reign of Sultan Ibrahim Nooraddeen.