Home Minister condemns Zaki

Minister of Home Affairs Dr. Muhammad Jameel Ahmad has condemned in strong terms the statements given by Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, Special Advisor to President Nasheed during the latter’s presidency, to the Indian media.

Zaki, who is in India allegedly for medical purposes, told Indian reporters a couple of days ago that if his party, that is the Maldivian Democratic Party headed by former President Nasheed, was in power, they would have called in the Indian military to protect GMR, the Indian company operating the Ibrahim Nasir International Airport.

Dr. Jameel’s condemnation of Zaki’s statements came last night, in his speech at the closing function of a workshop held at Kaafu Thulusdhoo. Dr. Jameel said that Zaki’s statements were similar to the “bloody aggression against the Maldives in 1988 by the terrorist mercenary leader Vasanthi”. Dr. Jameel described Zaki’s statements as “a threat to national security”.

The Minister said that national security would be threatened or disrupted not only with weapons but also with words uttered from the mouth.

“We still have Vasanthis among us. They may not be using swords and guns, and such words coming out of their mouths are by no means less serious compared to the gun-attack by Vasanthi and his mercenary group. Threatening to deploy foreign military forces in the country to protect business interests of particular companies is things that Vasanthi would have done”, said the Minister.

Zaki, in his statements to the Indian media, had also claimed that demonstrations and other activities against GMR currently being conducted in the Maldives are staged by religious extremists.

Responding to Zaki, Home Minister Dr. Jameel said that attempts to destroy the nation’s sovereignty by people like Zaki could not shake the determination of the Maldivian armed forces.

The Ministry of Defence issued a Statement last night, saying that Zaki’s statements were a threat to national security, and people who perpetrate acts that threaten national security would face legal consequences.

Zaki was recently arrested by the Maldives Police Service in an uninhabited island with some of the leaders of his party, including an MP and Zaki’s own son Hamdhaan, with liquor and allegedly some narcotic substances too. Some say that Zaki’s “outrageous statements to Indian media are a furious blast of his hatred of Islam and the Maldivian laws and the government, for arresting him for his lifelong pleasure-pastime, namely drinking”. Drinking alcohol is a criminal offence in the Maldives, in accordance with the injunctions of the Noble Quran, which the Muslims believe to be the Word of God.