News Desk
MALE’ — The People’s Majlis will hold an additional sitting at 1pm on Sunday to elect a new Deputy Speaker, Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdullah announced, after Ahmed Nazim’s resignation earlier in the morning left the chamber’s leadership post vacant.
The 9am sitting had been scheduled specifically to hear and vote on the no-confidence motion against Nazim. When Speaker Abdul Raheem opened the session, he announced that Nazim had resigned from the post of Deputy Speaker. With nothing else on the agenda, he closed the sitting.
He then announced the 1pm session. No formal agenda was published, but a senior PNC member confirmed the sitting would be held to elect a new Deputy Speaker.
The parliamentary session was originally due to conclude on 15 May. It was extended to the end of the month, with the Nazim removal process cited as the reason for keeping it open. That extension now expires at the end of today. The election of a new Deputy Speaker will need to be completed within this sitting for it to happen before the session closes.
The PNC holds 76 of the 93 seats in parliament and will determine who takes the post.
