Speaker of the Parliament and former president of Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed has discouraged the public from watching and listening to channels that spread hatred and hostility.
The former president urged the public to not watch such channels while Channel 13, believed to be a media wing of Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), has come under fire for entertaining a program participant who called to incite violence against the Maldives President. The incident is currently being investigated by the police and the media council.
Nasheed, also a former president of the Maldives, said it is not right to call to shut down any media. However, it is not acceptable for any media to spread hatred and animosity, said Nasheed. He requested the public not to tune to such channels, and not to believe the news shared on such platforms.
The channel has since apologised for the incident, and said the station had immediately disconnected the call when the participant began speaking in the manner. It further said the channel does not encourage violence.
