The government told organisers that a show by Australian ABBA tribute band Bjorn Again, scheduled for the social centre on Thursday night, cannot go ahead, Adhadhu reported. Uba Events had been advertising the show and selling tickets, the stage was being built and the band was due to arrive from Australia on Tuesday night's Singapore Airlines flight. Maldivian artists had been booked as opening acts. The government has not said why, and the organiser has not commented.
Kulhudhuffushi Mayor Mohamed Athif objected to WAMCO's plan to transfer burnt waste from the Thilafushi fire to the waste management facility in Haa Dhaalu Kunburudhoo, saying it was unacceptable to use an island in the middle of the northern atoll as a dump for the country's waste while billions were spent reclaiming land near Malé. His comments drew public support on social media, with residents arguing the atoll was overlooked for tourism development but suddenly noticed when waste disposal was needed.
Rubbish has been piling up on the capital’s streets after a fire at Thilafush last week forced a reduction in waste transfers from the capital. Malé City Council warned of a potential public health crisis. Eleven councillors visited WAMCO, where officials said affected areas of the site had to be closed but pledged to restore full operations before the end of this week.
The state-owned Maldives Tourism Development Corporation is preparing to transfer the head lease of Gaaf Dhaal Magudhuvaa, currently subleased to Turkish operator Ahmet Aydiniz, which runs the five-star Ayada Maldives resort, to the Turkish company for US$1.5 million, despite the sublease generating up to US$1.2 million per quarter with five years remaining until the lease period expires, sources told Dhauru. The move reportedly drew resistance from board members and comes days after PCB removed long-serving MTDC managing director Ahmed Niyaz from his post, amid separate reports of attempts to shift majority shareholding to the government at below-market prices.
Harris Mohamed was appointed managing director of MTDC, five days after Ahmed Niyaz was removed from the role. Harris previously served as state minister of Tourism under this government and has held senior positions including acting MD of MMPRC from 2015 to 2018 and general manager of MACL.
The measles outbreak reached 186 cases after 20 new infections last week. HPA said more than 12,000 people have been vaccinated so far and urged the public to complete two MMR doses, warning that measles can cause serious complications including brain damage, pneumonia, blindness and deafness, and weakens the immune system leaving patients vulnerable to other illnesses.
Fenaka said employees who voluntarily applied to leave during the company's rightsizing exercise were paid four months' salary as part of a mutual separation agreement, pushing back against media reports it described as misleading. The state utility opened voluntary redundancy to staff in June as part of efforts to reduce a workforce whose size and payroll have been flagged in previous audit reports as unsustainable relative to the company's revenue.
MTCC conducted a pre-repair survey of Ameenee Magu, cutting through the asphalt to assess the damage before beginning repairs on the road along Izzuddeen Magu and Boduthakurufaanu Magu, which were handed to the company last month. The road, resurfaced at a cost of MVR84 million (US$5.4 million) under the previous government and opened in early 2024, has severely deteriorated with asphalt buckling in multiple sections, and was previously subject to allegations of substandard materials and underpriced work.
A futsal court opened adjacent to the gutted former housing ministry building that burned down in December 2024, drawing public criticism on social media given that the cause of the fire remains unexplained and an Indian government investigation report has not been made public.
