Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has said a request was made to the Presidential Commission on Corruption and Asset Recovery to publicise the names of all parliamentarians who received benefits from the corruption scandal of Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC). Parliament Speaker Nasheed made the statement after a parliamentarian noted that several members of the parliament received benefits from the MMPRC corruption scandal.
Speaker Nasheed said he has requested the Commission on Corruption and Asset Recovery to reveal the names of the parliamentarians who received benefits from the scandal, noting the commission would have identified the names through their investigation. Moreover, he said the Attorney General and Maldives Police Services must also be aware of the names of all beneficiaries at this point.
Nasheed said he hopes the commission will press charges against the beneficiaries of the embezzled state funds very soon. He said it is important for the public to know the names of the parliamentarians who acquired embezzled state funds, as accusations can be made on all 87 parliamentarians otherwise.
The speaker added Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) received two mobile phones and a laptop belonging to former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb, which were handed over to a forensic accountant. He said the report from the forensic accountant has been submitted to the Attorney General by MDP.
Speaker Nasheed said the Commission on Corruption and Asset Recovery has enough information to convict the individuals who benefitted from the corruption scandal, adding there is no reason for there to be any delays in pressing charges.
The commission had earlier revealed that 267 individuals received funds embezzled from MMPRC, including 16 members of the current parliament session.