Deputy Speaker of parliament and Dhiggaru MP Ahmed Nazim has said that the main purpose of the proposal to shorten the special general meeting of the government and state-owned public companies is to solve the problems faced by the Bank of Maldives (BML).

Nazim made the remarks while speaking during the debate on a bill moved by Feydhoo MP Ismail Nizar on behalf of the government to amend Sections 100, 113 and 126 of the Companies Act.

Section 113 (a) of the Act says that every private company shall have at least one director at all times. Clause (b) says that each public company should have at least two directors, and (c) says that each government company and local authority company should have at least three directors.

Clause (d) of the Act says that while clauses (b) and (c) have other provisions, this clause does not prevent it from specifying the minimum number of directors to be present in a government company in any other law or law or resolution that constitutes a government company.

However, the amendment seeks to include the company's operating rules within the clause.

Thus, Clause (d) stipulates that while clauses (b) and (c) have other provisions, this clause does not prevent an increase in the minimum number of directors to be present in a company in any other law or in a law or resolution or regulation governing a government company.

Section 100 (a) of the Act says that as per section 99 of the Act, a company shall be invited to the meeting within 21 days of receipt of the application for a special general meeting. The second number says it should be held within three months.

The amendment seeks to shorten the invitation period to three days and shorten the duration of the meeting to 10 days.

The amendment also seeks to reduce the 14-day period in section 1 and 2 of Section 100 (b) of the Act to seven days, which requires notices to hold a special general meeting of private companies and public companies.

If it is brought to the notice of the Registrar that there are no directors and managing directors in the company as specified in Section 113 of the Act, the Registrar has the power to direct the company to appoint directors and managing directors as specified in the said section. The bill also seeks to shorten the 30-day period under Section 126 (a) of the Act to 10 days, which states that the company will have to appoint directors and managing directors once the registrar directs the company.