Main-ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP)'s Parliamentary Group has made the decision to pursue the dismissal of Gender Minister, Shidhatha Shareef.
A tweet posted by MDP's Secretariat said all 45 members who attended the party's parliamentary group meeting held Wednesday were in favour of removing Minister Shidhatha from Office.
During Wednesday's parliament sitting, several members of the ruling party had called for Shidhatha to step down, claiming that she had failed to protect children and effectively fulfill her responsibilities. If she refuses to step down, the party will pursue her dismissal through the parliament, they stated.
Minister Shidhatha has been heavily criticized over the past few weeks after several cases of sexual abuse of children and other forms of negligence surfaced. The backlash has intensified after it became known that a disabled youth was allowed to reside under the care of the former Disability Ambassador Ahmed Hishan, despite being made aware of sexual abuse allegations against him. The issue was heavily debated during Wednesday's parliament sitting.
While the MDP parliamentary group has voted to dismiss Shidhatha, the party holds super majority of the parliament with 65 members.
