President’s Office Releases Receipts of Former President Solih’s US Trip
The President’s Office issued receipts related to former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s trip to the United States. Solih travelled to the US in September 2021 to deliver a speech at the United Nations assembly.
The request for this information was made under the Right to Information (RTI) Act by Ahmed Azaan, the current Central-Hithadhoo MP, during his tenure as a local journalist. Azaan confirmed that the receipts have been shared with him, in line with the transparency policy of the current President, Dr Mohamed Muizzu.
advertisement
advertisement
advertisement
During a Supreme Court hearing last Monday, state prosecutors argued that the request for the trip’s receipts breached the RTI Act, claiming the President’s Office was not obliged to disclose them. The state also sought to overturn a High Court decision that had ruled in favour of the Information Commissioner’s Office, demanding the disclosure of the receipts.
Azaan, expressing concern over the state’s stance, argued that expenses incurred from taxpayer money should not be considered personal information. He hoped that Attorney General Ahmed Usham would reconsider his position on the matter.
Subsequently, the Attorney General’s Office announced last Tuesday that it had reviewed the High Court’s ruling and decided to recant its appeal to the apex court, advising the President’s Office to disclose the information.
Muizzu affirmed that no RTI submitted to the President’s Office or any ministry under the Right to Information Act would go unanswered, emphasising his commitment to running an accountable government. However, he also criticised some individuals for submitting RTI requests for political activism.
While Muizzu asserted that his office and government ministries have responded to all RTI queries, there have been instances where the President’s Office did not provide adequate responses. For example, requests for details on political employees were met with vague responses, such as directing inquiries to individual ministries or claiming website issues.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICOM) has expressed concern over these inconsistencies and threatened legal action against the President’s Office. In response, the government announced plans to launch a website where all government activities can be found in one place, further asserting its commitment to transparency.
President Muizzu also mentioned his initiative to disclose the expenses of his official visits voluntarily and affirmed the continuation of the Ahaa Forum, a platform for open dialogue.
