Speaker of Parliament Mohamed Nasheed has stated he does not believe the May 6 terrorist attack has any link to the government. The speaker made the statement while speaking on the Ask Speaker programme, which is held annually to answer Parliament-related questions from the public.
Responding to a question regarding the terrorist attack against him, Speaker Nasheed said he does not believe the government has any involvement in the attack, since he is a leading figure of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), which is the leading party the government and has the majority in the Parliament. Speaker Nasheed also said that the government would lose public trust if investigative authorities failed to find those who had planned and funded the attack. The investigative authorities should conduct a deep and thorough investigation and should not tolerate influence from outside parties, even if it was from the home minister or the president, he said.
Furthermore, Nasheed said the parliamentary inquiry would reveal details of the response of the national security services, the police commissioner, and the defence minister following the attack. He also expressed his belief that the investigation requires more technical assistance from international experts.
Speaker Nasheed was severely injured after an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was triggered near his residence in Male', while he was getting into his car on the night of May 6. Maldives Police Service (MPS) has arrested five people in relation to the attack, including the individual who detonated the IED and the owner of the motorcycle to which the device was attached.