Judicial watchdog committee recommends Didi be sacked

The Judicial Service Commission committee that is investigating Supreme Court Justice Abdulla Didi has decided to recommend that he be dismissed.

The committee’s decision must first be approved by the 10-member JSC before it can be sent to parliament. 

Didi, who is accused of bribery and corruption, will be given 30 days to respond to the investigative committee’s report. 

The Supreme Court justice is accused of regularly taking bribes, releasing criminal suspects in return for favours and seeking government job opportunities for members of his family, including his wife, the former deputy ambassador to Malaysia. 

He is also suspected of taking a US$1 million bribe to sentence Nasheed to 13 years in jail.

Didi’s lawyer Adam Shameem told the Maldives Independent that the JSC had yet to inform the defence team of the committee’s decision. He said the defence team would decide what to do after analysing the report. 

“We haven’t been informed [of] anything yet. I am aware of [the] JSC public announcement. However, we can only respond to the report after seeing it,” he said. 

The Supreme Court justice is currently in Malaysia for medical treatment after attending a public hearing into the allegations made against him. 

Shameem said the JSC had given Didi 15 days’ leave, which expires on Friday. 

“He will return to the country before Friday. I don’t know exactly when he will return,” he said.

Information relating to the suspected criminal activities of Didi were uncovered during an investigation into the $90 million embezzlement of resort acquisition fees by Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation, the JSC said they had been told by the police.