Wednesday
30th Oct 2024
Dhivehi Edition
Ameeth.
Former Health Minister Abdulla Ameen’s brother and Former MP for the Maduvvaree Constituency Mohamed Ameeth receives MVR 3.35 million from the government annually.
Ameeth is the Deputy Ambassador assigned to Japan by the Maldivian government. Ameeth was appointed in the thick of the pandemic when the Maldivian economy along with the global economy had come to a halt. He has been in his post ever since.
He receives a total compensation of MVR 3.35 million annually, which constitutes to MVR 279,228 monthly.
Breakdown of Ameeth’s Annual Income for his Ambassadorship
⁃ Basic Salary of MVR 216,000
⁃ Ramadan Allowance of MVR 3000
⁃ Special Allowance to the Post MVR 192,257
⁃ Commuting Allowance of MVR 272,749
⁃ Dependence Allowance of MVR 2,057,953
⁃ Other Allowances of MVR 608,782
⁃ Total of MVR 3,350,741
Ameeth is one of the most highly paid diplomats by the government of Maldives. The Maldivian embassy in Japan employs a total of 7 people including Ameeth.
A foreign relations expert commented to TMJ that there was no particular use of having a Vice Ambassador in addition to the appointed Ambassador in a country as expensive as Japan. The expert further described the decision to be “wasteful” and “unnecessary”.
The Ambassador, Deputy Ambassador and First Secretary appointed to Japan earn a collective salary of over MVR 8 million in compensation. This is amount is greater than the annual budget allotment for some of the other government agencies.
President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih came into his position with the promise of reducing political positions and minimizing expenses on such positions. The president had criticized the previous government’s decision to fill 400 political positions, meanwhile, the political positions in this presidency has seen a dramatic increase with 1000 filled political positions.