Maldives central bank, Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA)’s Governor, Ahmed Naseer has refuted reports of the authority being involved in illicit activities related to the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) embezzlement case.
Following former President Abdulla Yameen’s accusations against local banks and the central bank of having a hand in the MMPRC’s embezzlement, the biggest case of graft in Maldives history, some claims have been circulating regarding the matter in the media.
Governor Naseer responded to these claims by stating that the graft case is being investigated by investigative bodies and assured of the authority’s commitment to provide support in any way to help in the investigations.
Asserting that the authority has no hand in the MMPRC graft case, which saw the embezzlement of MVR 1.22 billion through state funds, the MMA Governor stated that the funds which were supposed to be transferred to the state, were believed to be transferred to the accounts of private companies.
For these reasons, Naseer highlighted that this was not done through the authority’s system and that this was done because of the negligence of some working in the authority.
Stating that the authority will take adequate measures against any financial institution for going against the legal mandate, if needed, Naseer said that relevant steps will be taken.
Naseer further reassured the public that the Presidential Commission on Corruption and Asset Recovery will have the full support and cooperation from MMA.
Governor Naseer revealed that although they had sent 137 such cases to relevant investigative units, none of them have yet been investigated. He went on to reveal that MMA is seeking foreign help to conduct investigations.
Over USD one billion was embezzled from the state during Yameen’s administration in the MMPRC embezzlement scandal. His Vice President Ahmed Adeeb had at court, stated that USD 80 million was taken to Yameen’s home, “Dhoovehi” and counted by a Bangladeshi who is specifically hired to count Yameen’s cash. Although Yameen admitted that some of the embezzled cash had gone to his home, he has accused Adeeb of being behind it.
Although having admitted to receiving stolen funds, Yameen later backtracked on them, stating that he never received the stolen funds at home. He has since stated that his alleged involvement in the case cannot be proven. The former President also stated that he had personally taken action against all corruption cases reported to him, with the cases having been investigated on his order while other investigative bodies “ignored them”.
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