Former President Abdulla Yameen has called for money laundering charges to be filed against Heena Waleed, the CEO of the National Social Protection Agency (NSPA). Speaking at a People’s National Front (PNF) gathering on Monday night, Yameen strongly criticized Heena and linked the controversy to President Mohamed Muizzu.
Yameen accused Heena of wrongdoing in the recently terminated agreement between NSPA and Maldives Media House, which runs MMTV, a network connected to President Muizzu. The agreement involved renting two floors of a building owned by Maldives Media House for NSPA’s office space.
“This is money laundering. At this point, Muizzu should come forward and tell the public that Maldives Media House is not his company. If he doesn’t, people will assume MMTV belongs to him. Heena should resign, and she must face charges for money laundering,” Yameen stated.
NSPA’s deal with Maldives Media House came under intense scrutiny after it was revealed that the agency agreed to pay over MVR 500,000 monthly in rent. The public backlash led to the termination of the agreement on Monday.
The controversy deepened when it was disclosed that NSPA required 12,000 square feet of office space and Maldives Media House was the sole bidder for the tender. Despite NSPA’s claim that no third parties were involved, critics have raised concerns about the process and transparency of the deal.
Adhadhu has learned that the building, located in Male’s Mahchangolhi area, has a total size of 4,365 square feet. Of this, MMTV rents four floors, with NSPA agreeing to lease two of them. The rent for the NSPA space was set at MVR 580,000 per month, amounting to MVR 34.8 million over five years.
The high rental costs and the sole submission of Maldives Media House’s proposal have raised questions about the integrity of the process.Yameen also criticized Parliament Speaker Abdul Raheem Abdulla for preventing lawmakers from discussing the issue in the People’s Majlis. He demanded Heena’s resignation and called for a full investigation into the matter.
