Jumhoory Party leader Qasim Ibrahim speaks to Mihaaru. PHOTO: NISHAN ALI/MIHAARU
Opposition Jumhoory Party (JP) leader Qasim Ibrahim’s lawyers have appealed Maldives Correctional Service (MCS) to revise its refusal to extend Qasim’s 10-day medical leave.
The former Maamigili MP’s family on Saturday appealed to the Commissioner of Prisons Ahmed Shihan to extend his medical leave to three months, till December 2017. Qasim is currently in Singapore, being treated at Paragon Medical for a serious cardiac problem.
However, MCS on Monday responded to his family and stated that his leave cannot be extended, and that it will expire on Saturday.
The local business magnate’s lawyer and former Deputy Prosecutor General Hussain Shameem on Wednesday said that 10 days are not enough to complete the procedures that have been prescribed for Qasim’s treatment, and that his condition is very serious.
Shameem said that they have submitted all of Qasim’s medical test reports, with the recommendations from his doctors to MCS, asking them to revise their decision.
According to Qasim’s doctors at Paragon Medical, he has vessel coronary artery disease. This causes the main coronary arteries of the heart to narrow, and if the narrowing becomes critical, the patient can develop chest pain and shortness of breath among other symptoms.
His doctors, in writing, recommended to keep Qasim under observation before his angioplasty, and advised him not to fly out for another three months while he is recovering.
The former lawmaker was convicted of bribery in late August for comments he had made at an opposition rally held ahead of the opposition-lobbied censure motion against the parliament speaker in March. Qasim was slapped with a sentence of three years, two months and 12 days of imprisonment. He lost his parliament seat with the sentence.
The Criminal Court had, however, ordered authorities to make arrangements for Qasim to fly abroad for his treatment as soon as possible, after he fainted in court in his initial verdict hearing.
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