The Public Accounts Committee of the People’s Majlis has decided to instruct MPL (Maldives Ports Limited) to take measures regarding the case of 28.3 million rufiyaa worth of diesel that went missing. This issue came to light following a special audit report released by the Auditor General’s Office covering transactions from 2018 to 2020. The report stated that employees from both MPL and FSM were involved in the loss of a large quantity of fuel, and that the lost funds have not been recovered to date.
After investigating the matter, the Public Accounts Committee prepared a report proposing five actions to be taken:
- Implement the recommendations highlighted in the audit report.
- Install camera systems and digitalize fuel dispensing meters to monitor fuel-selling vessels, enabling live reporting; and create a system to show live tank levels of barges within 45 days.
- Expedite the process of recovering damages incurred by MPL, and submit a detailed report to the parliament on the work done by the Prosecutor General’s Office and the courts in this regard.
- Strengthen MPL’s internal financial transactions and instruct the Auditor General’s Office to conduct a special audit.
- Establish systems within three months to monitor fuel vessels even after they leave the Male’ area.
The previous report released by the Audit Office had recommended nine improvements, including submitting the case to the Anti-Corruption Commission and the police for investigation, recovering the lost funds, monitoring fuel usage, and installing meters in tanks. During today’s parliamentary debate on the committee report, members affiliated with the government criticized the previous administration for numerous instances of corruption. A vote on passing this report will be held today.
