Gayoom’s lawyer changes his earlier statement

Despite Mohamed Waheed, Lawyer of the former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom earlier statement that the media can only reveal any information based on the reports of the Auditor General (AG) only once, in yesterday’s hearing of Gayyoom’s defamation case against the Editor of Miadhu Daily, Gayoom’s lawyer tried to change his statement saying that he did not intend the earlier statement.

In yesterday’s hearing Miadhu Editor Abdul Latheef countered lawyer Mohamed Waheed’s attempt to change his earlier statement, saying that he believes that all that was said in the previous hearings were recorded and he appealed the judge to decide after listening to the recordings.

Gayoom’s lawyer agreed that he said in a previous hearing that the media cannot ever use the information revealed on the reports of AG unless the reports are ruled as authentic and reliable in a court of law. He also agreed that he contradicted his previous statement by claiming that the Auditor General used state wealth for his personal uses when it has not been ruled in a court of law.

Gayoom’s lawyer also appealed the judge to stop Miadhu Daily Editor, Abdul Latheef from mentioning the contents of the reports of AG since the case is not about AG but about Gayoom’s defamation made by Miadhu Daily Editor. However, the Judge denied this saying that the base of the case stems from the reports of the AG.

In yesterday’s hearing Gayoom’s lawyer failed to respond to the allegations that Gayoom usurped the wealth of the state for his and his family’s personal use.

The next hearing of the case will be on March 21, 2011.

Former President, Gayyoom lodged the defamation case against Miadhu Daily Editor when Miadhu Daily published a news article based on a New York Times article alleging corruption during Gayyoom’s 30 year regime.

Although Miadhu Daily did not publish any information not included in the New York Times article, and the Miadhu report referenced the original report, Gayoom decided to sue the editor lodging the defamation case against him.

Meanwhile, the Secretariat of the Former President’s Office said that the legal team of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom is now researching to take potential legal action against the Chief National Correspondent of CNN-IBN, Sumon K. Chakrabarti for writing a report on the Indian weekly magazine The Week alleging that Gayoom and his half brother, PA Leader Abdullah Yameen have been involved in an international money laundering racket worth of 800 million US Dollars.