Parliament has confirmed President Mohamed Muizzu’s pick for prosecutor general, Abbas Shareef, with 85 votes in favour. Shareef had previously served as Secretary to the President on Legal Affairs, a position to which he was appointed by Muizzu shortly after he assumed office on 17 November last year.

The nomination was confirmed during an extraordinary session of the 20th Parliament held on Tuesday.

The Parliament Judiciary Committee had unanimously approved Shareef for a floor vote on Monday, following a vetting process that included an interview in which he earned a 93.91 percent mark.

The President’s Office opened for applications for the post on 27 August—the deadline closed on 11 September. Apart from Shareef, six others qualified for the post.

While Hussain Shameem, who had previously held the post, posted his resignation on the evening of 22 August, Parliament, later on the same evening, passed to removed Shameem from his position as Prosecutor General.