ACC under scrutiny; former PG Shameem calls for ACC probe deadlines

Former Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem has sharply criticized the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), alleging that its policies and the heavy workload are contributing to the spread of corruption in the Maldives.

His comments come in the wake of the conviction of Ahmed Saeed Mohamed, former Managing Director of Fenaka Corporation, on corruption charges.

Shameem, speaking on Monday, highlighted that a key factor in the proliferation of corruption is the ACC Chairman Adam Shamil's alleged policy of not investigating cases against the then-interim government. He underscored that while Saeed's recent four-year jail sentence for corruption appeared to be a step against the issue, a deeper look reveals systemic problems within the ACC's investigative process.

Shameem detailed the timeline of Saeed's case to illustrate his concerns:

• The incidents of corruption occurred in 2018 and 2019.

• A settlement agreement was signed on April 25, 2019.

• Written evidence, including documents from 2017, 2018, 2019, and a letter from May 3, 2023, was available.

Despite all necessary documents reportedly being gathered by May 2023, it took a further one year and seven months for the case to be forwarded to the prosecution. Shameem argued that if the case had been referred to the prosecutor's office in 2023, it could have been filed in court by June 2023, within the standard 15-day window.

He further noted that the ACC commenced its investigation during the former Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) government, and witness testimonies were available at that time. However, the case was only sent to the prosecutor's office a year after the MDP government's term ended, specifically on December 24 of the previous year.

"The report on the outcome of the trial of Ahmed Saeed shows that the ACC's investigation was not on the right track," Shameem stated. "Instead of looking at the whole case, the ACC tried to decide the part that happened during the MDP government after their regime was over." He also alleged that the current ACC President "pays special attention" to a policy of not investigating cases during the tenure of any government.

As a solution, Shameem proposed that legal deadlines be established for the ACC to complete its investigations, similar to the system already successfully implemented for the police. "What should be done to expedite corruption cases is to write a deadline in the law. For the ACC, the prosecutor's office and the court," he asserted.

Concerns were also raised regarding the ACC's financial efficacy. The commission's budget for 2023 was MVR 50 million, with MVR 47 million spent in 2024, and MVR 50 million allocated for this year, along with an additional MVR 10 million upon request. Despite these significant expenditures, the ACC's recovery rate for corrupt funds remains low. In 2023, the commission spent MVR 50 million, but only MVR 234,531 was actually recovered from a target of MVR 50,370,521 million.

A 2014 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) previously highlighted the ACC's lack of financial autonomy, with its budget managed by the executive branch of government. This reliance, the report suggested, could lead to political interference and compromise the ACC's integrity.