The police summoned and questioned Fisheries Minister Zaha Waheed on Thursday about the largest tourism scandal in the history of the archipelago.
On Saturday, the minister revealed that she presented herself to the police headquarters on Thursday, where she gave the police the required information. She did not give any further details.
The official audit report on the MMPRC scam showed that the government tourism promotion agency, Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) embezzled over US$ 79 million.
The police revealed that several individuals are being investigated over the graft. Although they didn’t disclose the names of the people being questioned, last week Although they didn’t reveal the names of the people being questioned, last week Ghassan Maumoon, son of former president Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom was questioned over the tourism graft.
At the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee last month, Prosecutor General Aishath Bisham confirmed that beneficiaries of the embezzled funds were seated on the committee itself and that several members of parliament and cabinet were engaged in the corruption.
Minister Zaha, Communication Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamaal and Youth Minister Ahmed Mahloof were reported to be among the ministers mentioned by the PG. Alas, they have denied the accusations.
Police have stated that while 177 individuals have been previously understood to receive money from the MMPRC graft, new data shows that this number is 267. These include the current administration’s seven government officials, 16 current parliament leaders, and eight judges, the police added.
