STELCO’s Azwar takes over as acting MD of Fenaka; Nizam appointed to Board

State Electric Company (STELCO)’s managing director Dr. Ali Azwar was appointed as the acting head of Fenaka Corporation on Thursday, a day after Mohamed Afeef Hussain was dismissed from his role as Fenaka’s managing director.

The move came after President Dr. Mohmed Muizzu announced on September 7 the decision to merge Fenaka into STELCO – a move he said was part of his administration’s cost cutting measures.

The Privatization and Corporatization Board (PCB) on Thursday appointed Azwar as an executive director and the acting managing director of Fenaka. It also appointed Ibrahim Nizam to Fenaka’s board of directors as a non-executive director.

Meanwhile, Fenaka’s former head Afeef was appointed on Thursday as a state minister at the Environment Ministry.

The Road Development Corporation (RDC), which is set to be merged into the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC), also underwent similar changes to its top management.

On Wednesday, the PCB dismissed Ibrahim Nazeem from his role as managing director of RDC. He has now been appointed as a state minister at the Sports Ministry.

Meanwhile, MTCC’s managing director Ahmed Saudee has been appointed as RDC’s acting managing director.

Fenaka is a 100-percent state-owned utility company established in 2012 by caretaker president Dr. Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik.

The company is heavily in debt, and has been plagued with allegations of corruption throughout different Maldivian administrations.

A special audit report publicized by the Auditor General’s Office (AGO) last year flagged MVR 2.2 billion in financial irregularities by Fenaka between 2021 and 2023.

Meanwhile, the RDC, established during former president Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom’s administration, had also been plagued for years with similar allegations of corruption.