The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of the Maldives has formally sought charges against three former senior officials of Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) in connection with the alleged misuse of reagents used for PCR testing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a statement, ACC declared that actions have been to be taken against Dr Ali Abdul Latheef — the former Chairperson of the Procurement Committee and member of Technical Advisory Committee; Ibrahim Saleem –the previous CEO, IGMH and Dr Milza Abdel Muhsin—former Head Laboratory at the hospital. Each of the three held these positions during peak coronavirus pandemic.

The ACC has asked the Prosecutor General's Office (PG Office) to prosecute them with filling cases against 3 officials under charges of misusing official capacity in accordance. This could mean providing an advantage to a third-party for self-interest and creating an advantage in the provision of PCR reagents by allowing RMLS Lab Services, a private company access at IGMH laboratory.

Besides, they said that the details of their investigation on Dr Latheef RMLC Lab Services have been opened and it reportedly points to what appears as activities similar to money laundering. A different case has been lodged with the Maldives Police Service to probe these suspicions. Further more, ACC has appealed to MIRA to audit the tax related documents of Dr Latheef on grounds they believe there may be financial anomalies.

The Commission has also passed the cases of Dr. Latheef and Dr. Milza to Maldives Medical Council, asking for information on any actions taken by the council against these two doctors among others which are still pending at MMC as per available statistics from Ministry COVID-19 task force Secretariat sources.

This case is one of several corruption allegations that emerged from the health sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the notable cases was the awarding of a contract worth MVR 34.50 million by the Health Ministry to Executors General Trading in 2020 for the procurement of 75 ventilators, which also drew significant public and legal scrutiny.

The ACC’s actions underline ongoing efforts to hold accountable those who may have exploited the pandemic for personal gain, ensuring transparency and integrity within the health sector.