The Democrats has decided to intervene in the Supreme Court case regarding the no-confidence motion against Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed.
At a press conference, Minority Leader Ali Azim expressed his belief the Supreme Court case filed by the main ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) is an issue concerning the Parliament. As such, he revealed that The Democrats has made the decision to intervene in the case.
Additionally, Azim said that The Democrats are always open to holding discussions to resolve any issues but that MDP filed the court case in an attempt to get a favourable outcome. He also claimed that MDP is obstructing the work of the Parliament and deliberately impeding the preparations for the President-elect's swearing-in ceremony. He further criticised MDP for making nonsensical decisions without forethought, adding that the main ruling party is now aimless due to the lack of leadership.
The Supreme Court has accepted the Constitutional case filed by MDP to find a resolution on the stalled no-confidence motion. MDP submitted the no-confidence motion against Speaker Mohamed Nasheed with 49 signatures on October 9. Speaker Nasheed was required to respond to the motion within 14 days after receiving the notice. However, the last few sittings were cancelled after Deputy Speaker Eva Abdulla filed for sick leave.
MDP stated that the parliamentary regulations dictate that if the Speaker or Deputy Speaker is unable to preside over a sitting, the senior most member appointed by the Speaker should take charge. However, the Secretary General of Parliament stated that the regulations specify that only the Deputy Speaker can preside over a no-confidence motion against the Speaker, and there are no explicit provisions for situations where the Deputy Speaker is unavailable for this duty. The Parliamentary Group (PG) of MDP has stated it will not support any work in the Parliament until the no-confidence motion is concluded.