From: Mnasheed's blog
Accuracy of the three incidents
When I wrote the blog post on “Shaheed’s Row with Mundhu”, I narrated three specific incidents that happened during the crucial days surrounding the death of Hussain Solah. I was personally aware of and privy to those developments and information. Dr Hassan Saeed, just like me, was aware of and privy to the same developments and information. All of what I have said in respect of those three incidents in the post can be checked back for accuracy with media reports published during the time. If someone carefully goes through the published information in various newspapers and websites, the truth of the internal perspective that I have outlined in the post can easily be verified.
My reason for citing the personal experience
More than the three incidents I mentioned in the post, my mention of the personal account in which I was able to gauge the truthfulness of Dr Ahmed Shaheed seemed to have caught the attention of the media. That narration was only meant to show how I have experienced his truthfulness myself. It was never meant to bring the issue of sensitive documents and incriminating evidence to the fore. I never claimed in the post to have those documents within my possession. I only said that I did come across those documents, I saw them and I took pictures of them. I have those pictures with me even today.
Reasons for resignation of Dr Shaheed
Yes, I still believe and affirm that Dr Shaheed left the cabinet due to the pressure that was put on him by the imminent no confidence motion, presence of sensitive documents in the hands of unfriendly parliamentarians, and the certainty that those documents would be talked about in the debate on his no confidence motion. It had nothing to do with the President blocking work on reform.
If one checks, he would notice that Dr Shaheed’s reaction to the resignation of Dr Hassan Saeed as reported on Minivan News was something to the effect that it was not right to hold one person to blame for the failure of a reform agenda. That was in sharp contradiction to what Dr Hassan Saeed had maintained in the press conference in which he announced his resignation.
Further, one may also want to check back the media reports that first rumored Dr Shaheed’s resignation, the meeting he reportedly had with the President, his talk of corrupt politicians, his announcement dismissing resignation while standing alongside the President at a DRP function at Kalafanu School, Haama Daily breaking a few days later a second story that Dr Shaheed may resign within a 48 hour period. Not many people know what went behind closed doors during those 48 hours inside the corridors of power, what deals were attempted, and what failed to materialize.
One may also want to reflect upon the mood of the Parliament when it debated a motion on alleged breach of parliamentary privilege by Dr Shaheed and how the members of parliament expressed their anguish and frustration. The actual no confidence motion was supposed to be a sequel to that debate. Not much time had lapsed between the day the debate on breach of privilege happened and the day debate on no confidence motion was to happen.
If one wishes to refresh his assessment of media reports of that period in August this year, one would easily know that reform and democracy were not the issues behind the resignation of Dr Shaheed. There were other issues. Issues not many know of.
The denial and manipulation
I am not surprised that Dr Shaheed totally denied on Minivan News that he and I ever discussed the subject contained in those sensitive documents. I am equally alright with his manipulated version in Haveeru Daily of the SMS message I sent to him.
When I wrote the blog post I was only narrating an experience based on my recollections of the conversation we had via SMS messages. When Dr Shaheed denied the conversation, I looked up the phones I used this year. I was lucky to find the entire conversation safely stored in the inbox and sent items of the phone I used in June this year. For avoidance of further speculation, I am reproducing the exchange of SMS messages between us. I have deleted the figures in square brackets because I do not want to release the figures.
The SMS exchange
My phone
Sent: 19/06/2007 22:08
Is it true that hnk has been paid pounds [---] k n [---] k for the last 6 months of 2006. n what is project druid? nasheed
Dr Shaheed’s Phone
19/06/2007 22:30
+9607773999
That’s a lot of rubbish
My phone
Sent: 19/06/2007 22:46
thanks
Dr Shaheed’s Phone
19/06/2007 22:50
+9607773999
Y did u ask?
My phone
Sent: 19/06/2007 23:00
grapevine
Dr Shaheed’s Phone
19/06/2007 22:52
+9607773999
As in koimala?
My phone
Sent: 19/06/2007 23:38
no. people talking. about government and funds.
Dr Shaheed’s Phone
19/06/2007 23:33
+9607773999
Wat sort of people?
My phone
Sent: 19/06/2007 23:44
cannot give details yet. i will let you know later when time is right. they can be taken as my friends.
Dr Shaheed’s Phone
19/06/2007 23:37
+9607773999
Interesting!
Will Dr Shaheed still say that this conversation did not happen between us? Will he still say that he was telling me the truth by dismissing as “rubbish” those payments made to HNK? I do not think so. I have seen documentary evidence in the hands of certain parliamentarians in the form of correspondence between Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Finance. Am I therefore justified in narrating a personal experience on my blog to show how truthful Dr Shaheed is?
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