Parliament Sitting Cancelled Again as Eva Calls in Sick

The Parliament Secretariat has once again postponed the scheduled sitting to address the no-confidence motion against Speaker Mohamed Nasheed, citing the continued absence of Deputy Speaker Eva Abdulla due to illness as the reason for cancellation.

Eva Abdulla, who has been grappling with dengue, communicated her inability to attend today’s sitting, resulting in consecutive cancellations this week. The no-confidence motion against Nasheed, initiated by the ruling party MDP with 49 signatures, faced these interruptions.

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The Secretariat defends its decision to cancel sittings, pointing to the Parliament Regulations that mandate the presence of the Deputy Speaker for proceedings related to a no-confidence motion against the Speaker.

However, the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) contests this stance. They have escalated the issue by submitting a constitutional case to the Supreme Court, seeking resolution for the barriers obstructing the progression of the motion within the parliament.

MDP’s Legal Team argues that the Secretary General’s decision contradicts Article 82 of the Constitution and Article 44 of the Standing Orders of Parliament. They assert that Article 205 (d) of the Parliament Regulations explicitly states that no parliamentary business should proceed without reaching a decision on a submitted no-confidence motion against the Speaker.

In response, the Supreme Court has scheduled the first hearing on this constitutional case for Monday at 10 am.