maldives president Mohamed Muizzu has come under fire from the opposition parties for his pro-China stance following the government’s approval of a Chinese spy ship to dock in Male.
Mohamed Muizzu, the maldives president of the Maldives and a supporter of China, is about to face impeachment proceedings from the country’s main opposition party. The Maldivian Democratic Party, the main opposition party, is in control of the legislature and has already begun gathering signatures in order to file for impeachment.Â
After the government allowed a Chinese spy ship to dock in Male, the opposition parties attacked President Muizzu for his pro-China stance.
Following a fierce altercation in parliament yesterday, the Opposition chose to start the impeachment process.
Violence broke out when government MPs from the PPM/PNC party disrupted a crucial vote on Sunday that was meant to approve the Muizzu government in parliament.
In recent weeks, maldives president Muizzu, who assumed office with a decidedly anti-Indian stance, has encountered resistance, particularly in light of the diplomatic spat with New Delhi regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s extensively shared post regarding his visit to the Lakshadweep islands.
After making critical remarks, three ministers were removed.
The latest attack on India came from Mr. Muizzu, who demanded that the 80 or so Indian troops stationed there leave by the middle of March. The troops’ presence was described as a security risk to the island nation.
After the Chinese spy ship incident, the opposition became more agitated over the abrupt change in policy, which had previously viewed India as an ally and friend.
The government was accused by the Democrats and the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) of making a “stark” anti-Indian pivot. The parties released a joint press statement denouncing the policy change as “extremely detrimental” to the long-term development of the country.
The long-term development of the nation will be severely harmed by alienating any development partner, particularly the most steadfast ally in the nation, the statement stated. Furthermore, the statement underscores the interdependence between the stability and security of the Indian Ocean and the Maldives.
The Maldives has a long history of working with development partners to benefit its citizens, and both the MDP and the Democrats emphasized how important it is for succeeding governments to continue this tradition.
Two days after the new government took office on November 20, 45-year-old President Muizzu formally requested the approval of his cabinet.
The original Government Oversight Committee report was rejected, and the Parliament was set to vote on the Cabinet on December 18. The new report from the committee, which was approved on December 30, was the subject of an extraordinary session of Parliament on Sunday, according to news website sun.com.mv.
However, in the run-up to Sunday’s vote, the maldives president Democratic Party (MDP), the main opposition party with a majority in parliament, made the decision to deny parliamentary approval for Muizzu’s cabinet’s four members and to issue a red whip against them.
Conflicts between lawmakers supporting the government and those opposed to it resulted from the move, which prevented the parliamentary session from continuing.
At last, on Monday afternoon, the Parliament rejected Haidar, Shaheem, and Usham in a long-awaited vote.
Eight abstentions resulted in the rejection of Haidar (voting 46-24), Usham (voting 44-24), and Shaheem (voting 31-30).
By a vote of 37–32, Saeed, who was also subjected to the whip, was rejected, though, just barely.
The MDP threatened to reject the remaining eighteen members of the Cabinet, including Ali Ihusan, the home minister, and Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon, the minister of defense, if the disruptions persisted
Assuming office on November 17, 2018, Muizzu—who is seen as a pro-China leader—shortly afterward asked India to remove its military forces from the maldives president. He claimed that the maldives president had given him a “strong mandate” to approach New Delhi with this request.
