South Hulhumalé MP Dr. Ahmed Shamheed has described the government’s proposed amendment to the Pension Act, which would allow pension funds to be managed by external parties, as a fraudulent scheme.

Speaking during a parliamentary session on Monday, Dr. Shamheed said the amendment is an attempt to misuse people’s pension savings and indirectly print money. He said changes proposed to Article 16 of the Pension Act, which would allow investments to be made through the pension office or asset managers, amount to a hidden fraud.

Dr. Shamheed argued that handing over the management of pension funds to others would enable the government to interfere with the funds following its failure to manage them responsibly.

He also claimed that a previous attempt to generate MVR 2.4 billion through the pension fund had failed after some pension board members resigned and others refused to cooperate.

Dr. Shamheed noted that the current law requires pension assets to be invested solely to maximise benefits for contributors and beneficiaries, warning that the proposed amendment would undermine the core purpose of the pension scheme.