PG Bisham: Impeachment being conducted contrary to procedures

Prosecutor General Aishath Bisham has said that she does not believe the process of her impeachment undertaken by the Judiciary Committee goes along with the spirit of the constitution and fulfills the necessary procedures.

The Judiciary Committee passed a motion of no confidence against the PG on November 19, 2019. After the issue was inserted into the agenda of the Parliament and announced the very next day, it was then forwarded back to the Committee.

The PG is scheduled to appear at the Judiciary Committee of the Parliament today at 11:00, to respond to the motion of no confidence made against her.

Bisham published a statement through the PG Office to respond to the notice of summons which read that the Speaker of the Parliament had outlined the reasons for why she should be removed from her post. She then noted that the reasons presented by the members of the Judiciary Committee for her removal did not match with the previous reasons stated by the Speaker.

She also stated that it was a violation of her right to respond to the allegations made against her when the committee failed to state the exact allegation for her to respond.

Bisham stated that the parliament had sent her a letter stating that she could attend the meeting with her lawyers and that she would also have the adequate period of time stated in the parliament regulations to answer to the allegations, but failed to mention which allegation eexactly that she had to respond to.

“Providing adequate time to respond to the allegations in the presence of a lawyer, is to allow the accused to prepare, so the allegations to be answered for, should also be explained very clearly.” read the statement by the PG Office.

The statement also read that the PG was not aware nor notified that her case was included as part of the unfinished works of the committee and that such a case of removing people from independent institutions and positions was a task that could not be presented as “other” items in a committee meeting.

“I would like to state that in regard to all of these factors, I cannot believe that the process to remove me from the post of the Prosecutor General commenced by the Judiciary Committee is being conducted with earnest intentions that fulfill the spirit and wordings of the constitutions” read the statement published by the Prosecutor General's Office.