Minister of Defence Mariya Ahmed Didi has accused the previous administration of using the Maldivian military as a tool to promote the administration's political interests rather than in matters of national security. The defence minister made the statement while answering questions posed by members of parliament.
Stating that her first order of work on assuming office was to conduct a situation assessment of the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF), Mariya said she was shocked on learning the state of the armed forces. She said during the administration of former President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom, nothing was done in terms of capacity building or in terms of enhancing the country's defence capacity in an event of a foreign invasion.
When asked if she is fulfilling the duties of the defence minister through the policies she advocates, the minister stated the defence policy implemented by the current administration is for Maldives to remain a powerful country. She added in her capacity as the Minister of Defence, she tries to ensure the army has the powers and the capability to protect the sovereignty of the nation.