Pro-government Jumhoory Party (JP) leader Gasim Ibrahim has called on to halt the installation of the Border Control System (BCS) project assigned to Malaysia's Nexbis Limited.
Speaking during a press conference held at the JP office, Gasim alleged that the BCS project had not been awarded in a manner that would best benefit the State. To that end he further alleged that the BCS project had been awarded to Nexbis in a way to facilitate a huge profit for the company as such a project would cost less then USD6 million (MVR92 million).
Gasim who is also the Maamigili constituency MP said that the BCS project had been given to Nexbis to attain a profit much more than its cost and stressed that the cost of installing the Border Control System being used in Singapore would not cost as much.
The lucrative BCS project by Nexbis amounts to MVR500 million.
He added that the other reason that the project must be regained is that it poses a risk to national safety and sovereignty of the Maldives. On that note, he highlighted that the details of every arrival to the Maldives would be made available to the company.
"Its the same thing as walking on the street naked," Gasim said.
Gasim said that his persistent calls to stop such projects awarded illegally and does not derive maximum benefit to the people has gotten him on the bad books of every government and may find himself in a similar situation with the present government over his call to stop the BCS project.
This would be the first time Gasim has publicly criticized the highly controversial BCS project.
Referring to the Supreme Court ruling to annul the High Court's temporary order to halt work on the BCS project, Gasim stressed that the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) must have the authority to halt illegally awarded projects.
"If it doesn't have such authority, we must amend the laws to give it such power."
Gasim, however did not agree with the notion that the Supreme Court's order had undermined the authority of the ACC.
Meanwhile, President Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik recently stated that the ACC is not an institution with the mandate to halt projects, but has been entrusted with the responsibility to investigate acts of corruption within the government.