Ibrahim Hussain Zaki
Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, is a Maldivian politician who served as the Minister of National Planning and Development from 1998 to 2008. He also served as the Minister of Tourism from 1993 to 1998 and the 3rd Secretary General of [the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation|Secretary General of SAARC] from 1992 to 1993. He also served as the Special Envoy of the President during the Nasheed administration.
Career
During Zaki's early career, he joined public service under the Ministry of [Foreign Affairs (Maldives)|Ministry of Foreign Affairs]. He served as the 2nd and 3rd Secretary of the Embassy of the Maldives in Ceylon, Under Secretary of the Ministry, Permanent Under Secretary, and Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Zaki is also the first Maldivian to serve as the Secretary General of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation from 1992 to 1993.
Zaki was appointed by Maumoon Abdul Gayoom as the Minister of Tourism from 1993 to 1998.
Zaki was later appointed by Gayoom as the Minister of Planning and National Development from 1998 to 2008.
Zaki also served as the Special Envoy of the President during the Nasheed administration after his appointment in November 2008. He served as the People's Majlis member for Alif Dhaalu Atoll.
In 2013, Zaki retired from politics and left the Maldivian Democratic Party.
Arrest
In November 2006, Zaki, then acting President of the MDP, was arrested for "inciting enmity against the lawful government".In November 2012, Zaki and his son Mohamed Hamdan Zaki were among the arrested in Hondaidhoo Island in the Maldives along with two other Members of Parliament, in an alcohol and drug related bust, along MDP parliament members Abdulla Jabir and Hamid Abdul Ghafoor.
Upon release, he went into exile in India, but returned on 12 August 2013 to support the MDP in the 2013 presidential election. He was later charged by the police for consuming alcohol.