Former defense minister Mariya Ahmed Didi, who served as a parliamentarian for four terms, has slammed Islamic Minister Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed and Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed for rude conduct in the Parliament.
Mariya, via a post on X on Tuesday, said she has not seen ministers, apart from ministers in the incumbent administration, be rude to parliamentarians, specifically, opposition parliamentarians, when appearing at the Parliament for ministerial questioning sessions. However, she noted witnessing opposition lawmakers, no matter what party, take extreme measures to have themselves heard.
Mariya particularly named Islamic Minister Shaheem, someone who she said the public expects to be the epitome of patience as Islam advocates for peace and patience, and Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed, who attended the Parliament on Tuesday.
Islamic Minister Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed (L) and Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed (R): The ministers have been slammed for rude conduct at parliament.
She urged against normalizing such behavior.
“I just hope this doesn’t become the norm and that the public don’t start expecting such behavior from ministers in Majlis, especially when MDP comes into government,” she said.
Shaheem, who attended the parliamentary sitting last Wednesday to respond to questions, clapped back at an MDP lawmaker who was protesting as he answered questions. This led to other lawmakers from the party to protest on the floor, disrupting order during the sitting.
Meanwhile, Saeed, who attended Tuesday’s sitting to respond to questions, sharply criticized the last MDP administration, led by the former president Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. He also provided indirect responses to most questions.