Hulhudhoo MP Ilyas Labeeb has said it is not wise for Parliament Speaker Mohamed Nasheed to sit on the Judicial Service Commission (JSC). He made the statement while speaking at the Parliament on Tuesday regarding the bill on restructuring JSC.
Ilyas said while several years have passed since the new Constitution was formulated and implemented, he believes changes must be brought to the JSC. He noted that the main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) had pledged to restructure JSC during the parliamentary election campaign. He said that his party would bring about the change as promised.
Ilyas said while two members appointed by the President already sit on the JSC, the President is one of the three powers of the State. Therefore, it is essential for a member appointed by the President to sit on the commission, he said.
However, while a member appointed by the President sits on JSC, the Parliament Speaker also has a JSC seat, noted Ilyas. This is not the wisest way to structure the JSC, he added.
'One of the state powers [the Parliament Speaker] sitting on JSC is not wise in my opinion. However, it is essential that a parliament member has commission membership,' he said.
Speaking further, Ilyas said many judges being JSC members was a conflict of interest. However, he noted that having one or two judges on the commission is not an issue. He added that it is important to have broad discussions on who can sit on the commission.
