Judiciary Committee backs initiation of Justice Ghani’s impeachment

The Parliament’s Judiciary Committee has voted in favor of the decision by Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to initiate impeachment proceedings against Supreme Court Justice Abdul Ghani Mohamed.

The JSC had placed Justice Ghani under 60-day suspension and lodged its request for his impeachment with the Parliament on Wednesday, November 20.

The Judiciary Committee, which reviewed the JSC’s decision to suspend and initiate impeachment proceedings against Ghani, took its vote during its session this Thursday morning.

It found that the JSC had followed standard protocols and procedures in reaching its decision.

“He attended the inquiry, answered to questions asked during the inquiry, and also responded to the investigative report,” noted the Judiciary Committee’s Deputy Chairperson, Fonadhoo MP Moosa Siraj, who had presided over this Thursday’s session.

Following the agreement among the members that the JSC had followed the necessary protocols, Kanditheemu MP Abdul Shaheem Abdul Hakeem presented a motion to forward the report to the parliamentary floor. The motion was seconded by North Henveyru MP Ibrahim Muizzu, and passed with the unanimous consensus of all present during the session.

JSC made its decision to initiate Justice Ghani’s impeachment following the conclusion of inquiries into misconduct allegations against him following an earlier review which identified multiple instances where the Supreme Court was found to have violated the Constitution or usurped the powers of the Parliament or independent state institutions since 2008.

Justice Ghani is also under investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) over a 2012 case during his time at the High Court.

Born in R. Alifushi, Justice Ghani obtained his Bachelor’s in Sharia and Law from the Al-Azhar University in Egypt in 2000. He was appointed to the Supreme Court on June 28, 2018.