Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) leader Mohamed “Colonel” Nasheed has been approved as the Maldives’ new ambassador to Thailand.
The parliament on Tuesday, passed Nasheed for the post unanimously, with 70 votes in his favour.
The parliament’s National Security Committee had evaluated the president’s nomination, and the report was presented to the parliament on Tuesday’s sitting.
The president had nominated Nasheed to the post on June 4.
Nasheed had previously served as a member of parliament. He was a member of the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP); however after he defected from the party, he was handed the reigns of DRP – which was originally founded by former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
During the 2008 election, Gayoom had contested as DRP’s candidate.
However, by the 2013 president election, most of the leadership of DRP had defected and joined MDP, while Gayoom had formed a new party, which is the ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM).
Nasheed's DRP is now in coalition with the ruling government.
