Maldives President Mohammad Muizzu has been accused of a coup attempt. The Government Bank of Maldives (BML) had banned transactions through debit cards, while the monthly spending limit through credit cards was set to $100, after which there was a danger of economic instability in the country. However, this decision was later withdrawn.
But President Muizzu has made serious allegations regarding this decision of the bank. Muizzu has called it an attempt to stage a coup. He has said that the government will investigate this move of BML Bank. Meanwhile, according to the Maldives police, hundreds of bot (fake) accounts on social media are being used to ask people to protest on the streets against the government, and this is an attempt to spread unrest among the people.
The Bank of Maldives says that it has taken this decision because foreign currency is being spent excessively through cards and the bank's foreign currency sales are stable. At a meeting of the People's National Congress (PNC), President Muizzu said that the bank's decision was against his advice. He has announced an impartial investigation into this matter. Muizzu has said that the government will not interfere in the investigation.
The Muizzu government is in the minority in this government bank of Maldives. Out of the 9 board of directors of BML, only 4 are from the government. Muizzu has alleged that the board of members is more loyal to the previous government, whereas the bank should work in the interest of the current government. Muizzu has accused the opposition of attempting a coup and linked it to the events in neighboring countries. He has said that he will use all constitutional powers to stop these illegal attempts to topple the government.
On the other hand, the opposition party Maldives Democratic Party (MDP) has denied Muizzu's allegations. Party president Fayaz Ismail has condemned the allegations and said that these are very low-level allegations. He said that MDP is not involved in any kind of coup attempt but it wants to fix the responsibility of the government. He has said that this is happening due to internal differences in the Muizzu government. Ismail says that in the coming times, Muizzu may have to face many challenges from his party for the post of President.
