The news of the disappearance of Ahmed Rizwan aka @moyameehaa as he is known on Twitter, hit me as if I’d been bitch slapped six ways till Sunday, real hard. Hard enough to make me reel from the impact. And looking at the outpouring of reaction from all corners of twitter occupied by Maldivians, I think it is pretty safe to say that I wasn’t the only one who felt that way.

Rizwan wasn’t someone I knew personally. But looking back into our acquaintance, I’d say that the impact he made on my life was nevertheless a strong one. He was one of the first tweeps with a considerable amount of followers to follow me when the coup happened and I practically exploded onto twitter, wanting a place to vent out the deep anger and frustration in my soul. So I for one know Rizwan mostly as @moyameehaa, the tweep who always had something encouraging to say, even in the face of all that hatred, blatant hypocrisy and blame game being played out like nobody’s business.

I remember him as @moyameehaa, the guy who lifted up my spirits when one night I was feeling extremely low, of all the things something to do with an ‘Islamic’ viewpoint on the role of wives in a marriage. What he told me that night I still carry with me, and every time I feel the same way, I just bring to mind his sound advice, something I’d forever recall as long as I live.

For those who have been touched by his online presence alone, @moyameehaa is the one who favorites your random and the not so random tweets, has something boosting to throw your way always and joins in on the silliest of conversations and yet at the same time holds a vast depth of knowledge and foresight when it comes to Maldivian politics and its deteriorating societal fabric. He is an empathic, someone whom you know feels deeply about issues and has never stopped actively advocating for them.

And that is why today, I plead everyone and anyone who has information on his disappearance to come forward. He’s the one person I can say without lying or sounding presumptuous that he’d stand up for your rights, yours, yours and mine. If we lose him, we’ve lost one of the resounding voices that has never failed to say what must be said, especially when the going becomes tough and at times impossible. And it is truly a testament to his character that practically almost everyone whose lives he seems to have reached out and touched seems to passionately believe in the cause and are calling out to find him.

I send out a plea to the authorities; do what must be done, do your duty, do whats required of you by law and leave no stone unturned. Let this be the foundation via which we find our way back to placing our trust in you; let this not be for naught. For the man who advocates for freedom tirelessly, let’s fight just a little bit more to find him. Set your political ideologies and differences aside. Dear Maldivian Police Service, as the law enforcement, it is your duty to protect and serve and I’ve never seen the words ‘at our discretion’ written in fine print to go along with that. Live up to your oath and protect our rights. There can never be a more nobler profession than the ones you are a part of, done right.

Lastly, I pray from the depths of my soul that he is safe and sound. I pray that the Almighty gives him, his family and friends the strength to persevere and most of all I pray that he returns to us, with that smile on his face, to tell us more of the variety of #FerryTales that has entertained us through a lethargic day or three. I fervently hope that wherever you are dear @moyameehaa, that you’re happy, safe and of your own volition. I pray so because the alternative doesn’t bear thinking. I pray so because with you gone, we have lost a shining star, a beacon of hope that can never ever be replaced.

Please come back soon. X

Note: If you have any information pertaining to the investigation, please contact the police or Rizwan’s family on 7754566 or 9773250