In his ongoing town hall meetings in Malé, President Muizzu met with residents of the Galolhu ward of the capital. Participants aired their concerns, grievances and pleas – ranging from housing and healthcare to municipal services – for more than three hours. The majority of complaints concerned social housing and delays in handing over land plots from Gulhifalhu. In his response, Muizzu pledged to address concerns about the downpayment and rent for 4,000 flats built in Hulhumalé under the previous administration's Gedhoruveriya scheme, denying allegations of changing the finalised list of recipients, and assuring that the handover process will be completed before the new academic year in late January.
More than 50 massage parlours have been shut down in Malé over the past week, President Muizzu said at his community meeting with residents of Galolhu. Addressing concerns raised by a participant, he said 24 parlours were closed following raids by authorities, while 28 were shut by their owners. An Immigration Taskforce has been inspecting spas and salons in the capital, detaining undocumented workers and shutting down illegally operated businesses. According to the economic development ministry, 37 businesses have been closed as of December 15. Nearly 100 inspections were carried out after 252 complaints were submitted since November 29.
Hassan Shifau was convicted on seven counts of money laundering for using forged telegraphic transfers to defraud foreign suppliers to import goods worth MVR 1.9 million (US$ 123,000) for his fruit business. He was found guilty of fraud and forgery last month. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Thursday. Judge Ali Nadeem had earlier rejected a plea agreement between the Prosecutor General’s Office and Shifau, who was appointed as a political director at the agriculture and animal welfare ministry despite his criminal record. He was dismissed last May after the charges came to light.
The Supreme Council for Fatwa issued an “academic paper” declaring monuments made in the image of living things to be haram. The ruling came in response to a question posed to the council, which said such monuments could lead to shirk, deprive places of angels’ blessings, and amount to imitating Allah’s creation. Several hadith were cited to support the ruling. But dolls used by children are exempt, as they are “tools for socialising young girls into domestic roles and child-rearing.”
New regulations on expatriate employment gazetted this week halted the recruitment of foreign copilots, boat captains and cashiers, while the issuance of quotas for several other professions – including teachers, nurses, pilots, divers, tour guides, guest relations officers, front office managers and housekeeping managers – will be phased out after specified transition periods.
The Privatisation and Corporatisation Board directed all state-owned enterprises, their subsidiaries, and companies with government shares to appoint information officers to handle public and media queries and to respond to right to information requests.
Police rescued a 68-year-old man near Shaviyani Feevah after his boat sank while he was travelling alone from Funadhoo. The man was in good health, police said, warning seafarers to watch out for drifting debris.
Villa College’s Master of Business Administration programme was listed on QS Online MBA rankings for 2026, becoming the first local institution to make the list.
The civil court hiked fees for the registration of agreements along with several fees to register cases and injunctions in a new fee structure published by the court.
