Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape has survived a motion of no confidence against him in Parliament.

During the proceedings, livestreamed on EMTV, Speaker Job Pomat announced the results of the vote as 16 votes in favour and 89 against.

In moving the motion, the member for Abau, Sir Puka Temu, nominated Sir Peter Ipatas as an alternative prime minister to Marape, and said the motion was moved on principle.

“This is not a vote of ambition, it is a vote of accountability, it is a vote of conscience. Mr Speaker what is the role of government if not to uplift its people,” Sir Puka said.

The seconder of the motion, Wabag Open MP Lino Tom acknowledged the government’s superior numbers, but said the opposition were acting in the interest of the people and challenged Marape to address them on the floor.

“He needs to tell the people because he is the chief accountable officer of this country,” Tom said.

“He can no longer blame his incompetent ministers. He can no longer blame any other person here on this floor.”

Speaker put question
The Speaker then went to immediately put the question, provoking the ire of the opposition bench with Madang MP Bryan Kramer accusing him of acting contrary to the Supreme Court order that had the House resume to hear the motion, which had initially been denied by the Parliament’s private business committee.

“Mr Speaker must be consistent with the privileges and the spirit and intent of the constitution that provide every member the opportunity to debate,” he said.

“This is a court order if you entertain this motion of ‘question be put’ then there will be contempt proceedings.”

Despite multiple points of order from the opposition calling for the motion to be debated, Pomat proceeded to put the question and the results were overwhelmingly Marape’s favour.

“Those in favour of this motion are 16 and those who are not in favour of this motion and who want the Honourable Member for Tari Pori, Honourable James Marape, to remain as prime minister are 89.”

After the vote, Marape moved a motion to address the movers of the motion, and spoke at length about the achievements of his government, while throwing jabs at the opposition MPs, many of who had served as ministers in his government at different times.

He finished by thanking all who supported him in today’s leadership challenge.

Thanks to members
“I want to say thank you for members on both sides of the House for your participation today.

“A sincere thank you to the 89 on their feet, who stood up to vote and I want to say thank you as your chief servant.

“I will try my absolute best to continue on leaving no place and no one behind as the ultimate aim of this government and should be for any government going forward into the future.”

The nominated challenger, Sir Peter, also rose to thank the opposition for nominating him, and to all the people of Papua New Guinea who reached out to him with messages of support.

He said he only accepted the nomination because so many MPs had complained about the prime minister’s performance.

Sir Ipatas challenged government MPs to stop bickering and gossiping about James Marape behind his back.

“As he rightly said, he is putting his time and effort into trying to make this country great,” he said.

Call to ‘not gossip’
“It is about our ministers and leaders and leaders of coalition partners not gossiping, but be open with the prime minister and talk about issues that we have for the country and for the people.

“This country belongs to all of us. Our people.”

Parliament is now adjourned until May 27.

Under new laws passed last month, Marape now has an 18-month reprieve from votes of no confidence.

With only two years left until the next election, RNZ Pacific understands this effectively gives him a clear run to the 2027 National General Election.

Several opposition MPs in Parliament on Tuesday urged Marape to make the most of the upcoming period of stability, and deliver some real results for Papua New Guineans.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Prime Minister Mark Brown has survived a motion in the Cook Islands Parliament aimed at ousting his government, the second Pacific Island leader to face a no-confidence vote this week.

In a vote yesterday afternoon (Tuesday, Cook Islands time), the man who has been at the centre of controversy in the past few weeks, defeated the motion by 13 votes to 9. Two government ministers were absent for the vote.

The motion was put forward by the opposition MP Teariki Heather, the leader of the Cook Islands United Party.

Ahead of the vote, Heather acknowledged that Brown had majority support in Parliament.

However, he said he was moving the motion on principle after recent decisions by Brown, including a proposal to create a Cook Islands passport and shunning New Zealand from deals it made with China, which has divided Cook Islanders.

“These are the merits that I am presenting before this House. We have the support of our people and those living outside the country, and so it is my challenge. Where do you stand in this House?” Heather said.

Brown said his country has been so successful in its development in recent years that it graduated to first world status in 2020.

‘Engage on equal footing’
“We need to stand on our own two feet, and we need to engage with our partners on an equal footing,” he said.

“Economic and financial independence must come first before political independence, and that was what I discussed and made clear when I met with the New Zealand prime minister and deputy prime minister in Wellington in November.”

Brown said the issues Cook Islanders faced today were not just about passports and agreements but about Cook Islands expressing its self-determination.

“This is not about consultation. This is about control.”

“We cannot compete with New Zealand. When their one-sided messaging is so compelling that even our opposition members will be swayed.

“We never once talked to the New Zealand government about cutting our ties with New Zealand but the message our people received was that we were cutting our ties with New Zealand.

“We have been discussing the comprehensive partnership with New Zealand for months. But the messaging that got out is that we have not consulted.

‘We are not a child’
“We are a partner in the relationship with New Zealand. We are not a child.”

He said the motion of no confidence had been built on misinformation to the extent that the mover of the motion has stated publicly that he was moving this motion in support of New Zealand.

“The influence of New Zealand in this motion of no confidence should be of concern to all Cook Islands who value . . . who value our country.

“My job is not to fly the New Zealand flag. My job is to fly my own country’s flag.”

Last week, hundreds of Cook Islanders opposing Brown’s political decisions rallied in Avarua, demanding that he step down for damaging the relationship between Aotearoa and Cook Islands.

The Cook Islands is a self-governing state in free association with New Zealand. It is part of the Realm of New Zealand, sharing the same Head of State.

This year, the island marks its 60th year of self-governance.

According to Cook Islands 2021 Census, its population is less than 15,000.

New Zealand remains the largest home to the Cook Islands community, with over 80,000 Cook Islands Māori, while about 28,000 live in Australia.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

In a highly anticipated session of the Tongan Parliament to debate and vote on the second vote of no confidence (VONC) scheduled for last Monday, December 9, in Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni Hu’akavameiliku and the Cabinet, Hu’akavameiliku surprised everyone by announcing his resignation — even before the actual debate had begun.

The session began with the Speaker, Lord Fakafanua, announcing the procedure for the day which was to have each of the seven grounds of the VONC read out, followed by the Cabinet’s responses, after which each member of Parliament would be allowed 10 minutes to make a statement for or against.

Before parliamentary staff started reading out the documents, Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Samiu Vaipulu moved that the VONC be declared null and void as it did not have the 10 valid signatures that the house rules stipulated.

He claimed that two of the 10 signatures were added on October 10, whereas an event included in VONC did not begin until October 21, thus making those signatures invalid. That event was the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which was held in Samoa, October 21-26, and the VONC cited it in relation to alleged Cabinet overspending on overseas travel.

After an hour and half of debate on the DPM’s motion, the Speaker ruled that despite the technical shortcoming, he would proceed with the VONC at 2pm after the lunch break. Hu’akavameiliku immediately asked for a break, as only 10 minutes remained before the lunch break, but the Speaker sided with VONC supporters and ruled that the debate begin straight away.

That is when Hu’akavameiliku asked for the floor and proceeded to thank everyone from the King to the nobles and his Cabinet members and the movers of the VONC before announcing his resignation.

The second VONC had been tabled on November 25. The Speaker instructed the parliamentary committee responsible to scrutinise it for compliance with parliamentary rules and determine whether additional information was needed before making it available to the Prime Minister and Cabinet by November 29.

More time request granted
Hu’akavameiliku was initially required to submit his response by December 3 for debate and ballot. But on November 28 the Speaker granted his request for more time, rescheduling the debate to December 9. The movers of the VONC were not happy, particularly given that the first one submitted in August 2023 had contained 46 grounds (compared with seven in the second), to which the Prime Minister and Cabinet had responded to in detail within five days.

There is reason to suspect that there was more to the request for extension than meets the eye. The inaugural graduation ceremony for the Tonga National University, which opened in January 2023, was held over three days beginning December 4, with the University’s Chancellor, King Tupou VI, officiating. Hu’akavameiliku, as Pro-Chancellor and chair of the University Council and Minister for Education and Training, facilitated the first day’s ceremony.

That date, December 4, marked the 1845 coronation of King Siaosi Tupou I, the founder of modern Tonga. Notably, King Tupou VI was absent on the second and third days, with Lord Fakafanua and Hu’akavameiliku stepping in to play the Chancellor’s role.

In a media conference on November 25 after the VONC was tabled, Hu’akavameiliku defended the VONC movers’ constitutional right to introduce it, but also said that since he only had a year left of his four-year term, he would have preferred a dialogue about their concerns.

He gave the impression to the media that he had the numbers to defeat this second VONC. However, his numbers were tight.

As of November 10, his Cabinet had nine members, reduced from 10 after his Minister for Lands and Survey, Lord Tu’i’afitu, resigned after receiving a letter from the Palace Office saying King Tupou VI had withdrawn his confidence and trust in him as minister.

Of the nine remaining members, four were People’s Representatives (PRs), including the Prime Minister, two were Nobles’ Representatives (NRs) and three were Non-Elected Representatives who could not vote on the VONC.

Question mark over allegiance
o, with six votes in hand, Hu’akavameiliku needed eight more to beat the VONC. He could usually count on five PRs — Tevita Puloka, Dulcie Tei, Sione Taione, Veivosa Taka and Mo’ale ‘Otunuku — and possibly three NRs that could have sided with him, Lord Tuiha’angana, Lord Fakafanua and Prince Kalaniuvalu.

But there was a question mark over Prince Kalaniavalu’s allegiance as he had voted in favour of the first VONC in September 2023.

The movers of the second VONC were confident they had the numbers this time round. Lord Tu’ilakepa, who had voted against the VONC in 2023, was one of the signatories this time around. Previously, Lord Tu’ileakepa had almost always voted with the Prime Minister and was loathe to be associated with members of Parliament who had any pro-democracy inclinations.

The seven PR signatories were Dr Langi Fasi, Mateni Tapueleuelu, Dr ‘Aisake Eke, Piveni Piukala, Kapeli Lanumata, Mo’ale Finau and Vatau Hui. They were also guaranteed the vote of Dr Tanieta Fusmalohi, still making his way back from COP29.

So, they had 11 guaranteed votes, and 13 if the recently resigned Minister, Lord Tu’I’afitu, and Prince Kalaniuvalu sided with them. As with the first VONC, the NRs would play a crucial role, controlling nine of the 26 seats (more than 33 percent of the Parliament) despite representing less than 1 percent of the country’s population.

Since King Tupou VI withdrew his confidence and trust in Hu’akavameiliku as Minister for Defence and Fekita ‘Utoikamanu as Minister for Foreign Affairs early in 2024, the Prime Minister continued as Acting Minister in those two portfolios.

There was hope that substantive Ministers would have been appointed (from the Royal Family) by the time of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Leaders Meeting in Nuku’alofa in August 24, but it was not to be.

Relations remained strained
In spite of the hulouifi (traditional reconciliation ceremony) performed in February, relations between the King and Hu’akavameiliku remained strained. One cannot help but think that the Palace Office was at least supportive of the VONC, if not among the instigators.

As PIF chair until next year’s leaders’ summit in Solomon Islands, Hu’akavameiliku reportedly felt let down by King Tupou VI’s absence from the country during the Leaders’ Meeting — not least because his father, King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV, and his brother, Prince Tuipelehake, were instrumental in setting up the PIF (South Pacific Forum, at that time) in 1972.

Together with Fiji’s Ratu Kamisese Mara, Cook Islands’ Sir Albert Henry, Nauru’s Hammer De Roburt, Samoa’s Malietoa and Niue’s Robert Rex, they walked out of the then South Pacific Commission (SPC) when they could no longer stand being treated like children by the colonial powers (US, France, UK, the Netherlands, Australia, and NZ) at the annual SPC meetings and their refusal to include decolonisation and nuclear testing on SPC’s agenda.

The Speaker immediately recessed parliament after Hu’akavameiliku’s announcement. By the time it reconvened at 2pm he had a letter from the Palace Office saying they had received the PM’s resignation in writing.

In spite of vociferous opposition from some of the VONC movers, he announced that, under section 18 of the Government Act, DPM Samiu Vaipulu would be Acting Prime Minister (in an interim Cabinet of existing members) until December 24, when Parliament is scheduled to elect a new Prime Minister from its existing membership of the house.

Lopeti Senituli is a law practitioner in Tonga and is the immediate past president of the Tonga Law Society. He was Political and Media Adviser to Prime Ministers Dr Feleti Vaka’uta Sevele (2006-2010) and Samuela ‘Akilisi Pohiva (2018-2019). This article was first published by Devpolicy Blog and is republished with the author’s permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Papua New Guinea’s opposition leader James Nomane says Parliament needs to be recalled immediately as the gravity of Wednesday’s actions to adjourn Parliament to dodge no-confidence vote “is something that cannot be taken lightly and can’t be dismissed”.

“This is not a dictatorship but a democratic country,” he said.

“If you say you have the numbers, why didn’t you allow the Vote of No Confidence to go ahead and you test your numbers, because the minute that happens, the PM will be disposed and we will have a new PM,” Nomane said, addressing Prime Minister James Marape.

He said Papua New Guineans lived in a country governed by the rule of law — the most important law governing the country was the constitution.

After the constitution, there were Organic Laws, Acts of Parliament, and the rules and regulations.

“The constitution is supreme, the Vote of No Confidence comes from Section 145 of the Constitution and it comes from the supreme law. Members of Parliament and dealing with the [no-confidence vote] need to take it very seriously on both sides of the house.”

‘Completely rejected’
“You have already heard from the last couple of motions we have submitted and it has been completely rejected by this Private Business Committee comprising of members of Parliament,” Nomane said.

He said the PBC is checking if the ‘tees’ and the ‘ayes’ have been crossed

“They have been nitpicking,” Nomane said,

“We brought our numbers, the office of the Prime Minister belongs to the people of Papua New Guinea.

“It is not the private business of one province, one district.

“There is no accountability.”

The government, using its numerical strength, voted 69-0 to adjourn Parliament until September.

Miriam Zarriga is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Four-time Vanuatu Prime Minister Sato Kilman has been elected to the top job for a record fifth time in Port Vila, ousting Alatoi Ishmael Kalsakau’s nine-month reign as the leader of government.

Kilman received a total of 27 votes, while Kalsakau got 23 votes.

Kilman, 65, was the deputy Prime Minister in Kalsakau’s government before being removed in May. At the time Kalsakau had stated that Kilman’s dismissal was for “stability of the coalition government”.

“Mr Speaker first and foremost I want to say a big thank you to the members of Parliament and the political parties that supported the change in government. Thank you,” he said.

“But thank you even more for standing your ground and for ensuring that democracy prevails in Vanuatu.”

Earlier on Monday, Vanuatu’s highest court — the Court of Appeal — dismissed an appeal against the removal of Kalsakau.

Last month, the opposition grouping, led by former prime minister Bob Loughman, brought a motion of no-confidence against Kalsakau.

Appeal to courts
They garnered 26 of the 49 votes cast but the parliamentary Speaker ruled they had not reached what he considered the minimum 27 required for a successful motion in the 52-member House.

Loughman’s group appealed to the courts, which last week ruled in their favour, but the Speaker appealed that decision.

That appeal was dismissed today bringing an end to Kalsakau’s tenure and triggering the election of the new Prime Minister.

Sato Kilman was sworn in as Prime Minister immediately after the vote on Monday evening.

He is expected to announce the composition of the cabinet of his new coalition government later this week.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

The Vanuatu Supreme Court has ruled in favour of the opposition, which contested a ruling by the parliamentary Speaker regarding what constitutes an absolute majority in Parliament.

The court case followed a motion of no-confidence in the prime minister being defeated under a technicality of the rules as interpreted by the Speaker.

Former prime minister Sato Kilman, who is now in the opposition, said the judge had ruled an absolute majority in Parliament was 26, so the opposition won the case.

But he said the judge had stayed the case until 3pm on Monday to allow any appeal.

“We are glad, because we believed that we were right from the start, and that is why we lodged the application to the court,” Kilman said.

Earlier this month the opposition, in seeking to remove Prime Minister Ishmael Kalsakau, won 26 votes in the 52-member House, while the government got 23 votes.

There was one abstention — from the Speaker — one seat is vacant and one is empty due to that MP getting medical treatment overseas.

Vanuatu’s constitution states that an absolute majority is needed to oust a prime minister and this has been interpreted to mean 27 MPs in the 52-member Parliament.

Legal precedent
Kalsakau said there was legal precedent to support this position.

In the judgment released today, the judge said the court “concludes that the actual number of members of Parliament when this vote was taken is the relevant number on which an absolute majority should be based”.

“It is the view of this court that the applicants have shown that their Constitutional rights, as set out in the application filed on 17th August 2023, have been infringed by the 1st respondent,” the judgment said.

“They are entitled to relief sought.”

It also said an order would be issued about that relief, but the order would include a stay to allow an appeal before any further steps are taken to enforce the order.

Supreme Court has just ruled that the vote of 26 MP’s to oust the PM last week was valid and that the PM was voted out by an absolute majority of 26 in a Parliament with 51 members. So we are still only in Government due to a stay order granted to allow us time to appeal.

— Ralph Regenvanu (@RRegenvanu) August 25, 2023

Cathy Solomon, 64, who lives in Port Vila, said the majority of people in Vanuatu were suffering because of “unfair and sad” politicians who were only thinking of self preservation.

She said the country’s politicians had failed in their purpose as elected representatives of the people.

She said it was time for more women to get into Parliament so they could challenge and change Vanuatu’s precarious political situation.

Hendon Kalsakau, 65, a chief of the Coconut Tribe on Ifira island, said the situation was “affecting deeply” the ni-Vanuatu people.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Vanuatu’s Parliament is scheduled to meet tomorrow to debate a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Ishmael Kalsakau’s government.

A political stalemate persists, with both the government and the opposition having the support of 25 MPs each.

The mover of the motion, opposition leader and a former prime minister Bob Loughman, requires the backing of at least 27 members to unseat Kalsakau.

However, Kalsakau also needs a majority in the House if he is to be able to pass legislation going forward.

Last Thursday, the government side boycotted a special sitting of Parliament to avoid the no-confidence motion.

Kalsakau told local media on Monday that the opposition’s attempts to unseat him was “irresponsible” and “a big waste of resources at a time when we are trying to rebuild our nation”.

Another former PM and head of the Reunification Movement for Change, Charlot Salwai, urged politicians to “unite and come out of this political crisis”.

Time for MPs to ‘find a solution’
“Vanuatu has experienced consequences of no-confidence motions over the past years and it is time for the MPs to come together and find a solution.

“The country and people are suffering because of our attitudes,” Salwai said.

There are 52 seats in the Vanuatu Parliament. One is vacant and one empty.

Both sides are claiming a National United Party MP, Bruno Leingkone, who is receiving medical attention abroad, is on their side.

According to the Vanuatu Daily Post, Loughman said Leingkone was expected to vote for the motion of no trust in PM Kalsakau virtually.

The first-ever law to regulate political parties has been tabled in the 2nd Extraordinary Session summoned 2 weeks ago to start next week. Then last week a motion of no confidence was tabled to be debated before those Bills can be tabled. Vanuatu’s perpetual political “Catch-22” https://t.co/UMzQoO0zxN

— Ralph Regenvanu (@RRegenvanu) August 11, 2023

RNZ Pacific’s Vanuatu correspondent Hilaire Bule said “the situation will be [clearer] when the Parliament is in session on Wednesday”.

“But the target of the government at the moment is to make sure that the opposition must not have 27 [MPs],” he told RNZ Pacific Waves.

“If the opposition reach 27 in the Parliament, the opposition will pass its motion against Prime Minister Kalsakau.”

Bule said the Parliament could not be dissolved as was the case last year, which resulted in a snap election.

“We have ended up in the political crisis because the Council of Ministers cannot request the President of the Republic to dissolve the Parliament because our constitution says that Parliament must have one year before a majority of members of Parliament or Council of Ministers can apply for dissolution of the Parliament,” he said.

“That one year of Parliament will be only on December this year.”

Bule said people had become accustomed to facing political crisis in the country and it was “part of their life”.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

The president of Vanuatu has dissolved the country’s Parliament just over halfway through the current four-year-term.

President Nikenike Vurobaravu signed the instrument for the dissolution of Parliament this afternoon on the eve of a proposed motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Bob Loughman that was to have been tabled tomorrow morning.

The now caretaker Prime Minister Loughman, who requested the dissolution, has welcomed the president’s decision and called on all Vanuatu citizens to respect it.

The national broadcaster in Vanuatu is reporting that the president Nikenike Vurobaravu has signed an instrument for the dissolution of parliament and copies of the signed document are circulating online.https://t.co/0Zh028z8pv

— RNZ Pacific (@RNZPacific) August 18, 2022

RNZ Pacific was still trying to reach the former opposition leader Ralph Regenvanu but in a statement on social media he said they would be challenging the president’s decision in court.

“The President of the Republic has dissolved Parliament on the advice of the Council of Ministers just hours before a scheduled motion of no confidence in the Prime Minister in an Extraordinary Parliamentary session called by the majority of Members. The majority of Members will be challenging this dissolution in court. – in Port-Vila,” Ralph Regenvanu posted on the Vanuatu opposition’s official Facebook page.

However, caretaker Prime Minister Loughman is already in campaign mode saying by law they must hold an election in not less than 30 days but also not more than 60 days time.

“My responsibility and that of my ministers [is] to make sure that we run and we conduct an election for the people of this country to elect their new representatives to represent them in Parliament,” he said.

“I had made an appeal earlier on that when it comes to selecting candidates, I appealed to all the communities to nominate and elect reputable leaders that have the qualities to lead this country.”

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

After a day of political showdown that at times involved shouting battles and personal clashes, the much anticipated motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare was defeated by 32 votes to 15 with two abstentions.

With the capital city Honiara virtually closed for business yesterday, attention turned to Vavaya Ridge where Parliament was debating the motion.

The motion came on the back of social unrest that saw the looting and burning of some 56 buildings across the city and the re-engagement of foreign forces in Honiara to arrest the situation two weeks ago and restore law and order.

In moving the motion, opposition leader Matthew Wale admitted that he had been conflicted by the need for this motion at this hour in “our history”.

“On the one hand we are dealing with it today because there is need for a political solution to the causes of the tragic events of two weeks ago,” he said.

“On the other, I am conscious that what we say in ventilating this motion may further add to what are already high levels of anger in certain quarters of our society.”

Wale said that as a result of the tragic events that caused so much loss and destruction and even cost lives he had called on the Prime Minister to resign.

‘Eruption of anger’
“I did not make that call out of malice toward him personally. I made that call in recognition of the fact that the tragic events were not isolated events, nor were they purely criminal, but were the eruption of anger based on political issues and decisions for which the PM must bear the primary responsibility,” he said.

“It is democratic for a Prime Minister to be called upon to resign, there is nothing undemocratic about the call. And if he chose to resign that too would be democratic.

“As is the case, the Prime Minister refused to resign, and therefore has necessitated this motion,” he said while moving the motion.

“Although [the people] are resource rich, yet they are cash poor. They have hopes that their children will have access to better opportunities than they did.”

— Opposition leader Matthew Wale

In arguing his case, Wale stated several issues.

On the economy, the MP for Aoke/Langalana said the vast majority of “our people live on the margins of our economy”.

“Although they are resource rich, yet they are cash poor. They have hopes that their children will have access to better opportunities than they did.

“They work hard to afford the high cost of education, though many children leave school because of lack of school fees. Our people are angry that education is so expensive, and that only those that can afford it are able to educate all their kids to a high level of education,” Wale said.

Access to healthcare challenging
“On health, Wale said the vast majority of our people lived where access to healthcare was challenging at best.

He said basic medicines and supplies are often not adequate to meet their health care needs adding that the state of the hospitals are perpetually in crisis management.

The opposition leader pointed out that at the National Referral Hospital Emergency Department patients were sleeping on the floor.

“Why is this the case? Who is responsible? Our people are angry about this,” he asked in Parliament.

Wale also highlighted logging companies disregard of tribal and community concerns, that drive conflict and disputes within tribes and communities. He said the government stood with the logging companies.

He also accused Sogavare of the use of the People’s Republic of China’s National Development Fund (NDF) money to prop up the Prime Minister as another of those issues that was undermining and compromising the sovereignty of the country.

He said the PM was dependent on that money to maintain his political strength.

Chinese funding influence
“How is he then supposed to make decisions that are wholly only in the interests of Solomon Islands untainted or undiluted by considerations for the PRC funds,” he asked.

“You see public anger has been built up over many years by all this bad governance. No serious efforts have been taken to address these serious issues. Provincial governments have increasingly over the past several years repeated their desire that they be given the constitutional mandate to manage their own affairs. Honiara has been consuming almost all the wealth that has been generated from resources exploited from the provinces,” Wale said.

He stated that the provinces had lost trust in Honiara.

“Erratic, poor, mercenary, and politically expedient decision making makes what is already a bad situation worse.

Wale said this was the situation specifically with Malaita.

“Malaita has stood on principle that a PM that lies to the country and Parliament does not have moral authority and legitimacy. Malaita would not accept it.

“Because of that principled position, this PM has not ceased to scheme and plot the consistent and persistent persecution of Malaita.

Malaita sought peaceful protest
“Malaitans have sought to petition the PM, twice, but were ignored and brushed aside in a rather juvenile manner. Malaita asked to stage peaceful protests, but these were denied.

“Malaitans sought an audience with the PM, but they were summarily dismissed. So what are they then supposed to do to get the PM’s attention? The PM consistently refused to visit Auki,” Wale said.

In his response, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare strongly rejected the claims stating that he had never received any issues of concerns from Malaita province.

“We never received any formal log of issues from them so that the government sits with them and dialogue over it,” he said.

He stressed that the government runs on rules and protocols on how they deal with each other.

Regarding the motion, Sogavare said it should never be brought to the floor of Parliament.

He accused Wale and his cohorts for driving the interests of a few people.

Willing to face justice
Sogavare said the majority of peace loving Malaitans condemned with utter disgust what had happened.

On corruption allegations, that the foreign forces were helping to protect his government, Sogavare said he was willing to face justice.

“I am very willing and if the leader of opposition can prove the allegations he has against me. This is the easiest way to remove the Prime Minister—that is to send him to jail,” he said.

On the lack of government support in terms of development on Malaita, Sogavare argued that despite the current economic environment his government had performed very well.

In that regard, he said the government did not fail the people of the country, including Malaita province, in the implementation of the twin objective of his government’s policy re-direction.

He said that the government had done so much for Malaita — as a matter of fact more than what some provinces that contributed so much to the country’s economy were getting.

Eight MPs including the PM spoke on the motion.

Robert Iroga is editor of SBM Online. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Politics in Papua New Guinea has been plunged into more turmoil today, with government MPs continuing to meet while the opposition was out of town, thinking they had adjourned Parliament.

The government MPs passed the Budget, and then made their own adjournment, until next April.

Last Friday, the opposition, bolstered by government MPs crossing the floor, called for an adjournment vote, which they won.

Those MPs, or an estimated 43 of them then travelled to Vanimo, to prepare for a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister James Marape, with that to happen on December 1.

The date is significant because Marape’s 18-month grace period from no confidence votes would expire then.

But yesterday the Speaker, Job Pomat, announced that opposition leader Belden Namah had no right to call for an adjournment and that Parliament was still in session.

Parliament was to resume at 2pm today but Michael Kabuni, a political scientist at the University of PNG, said this was brought forward to 10am, presumably prompted by legal action the opposition’s lawyers were preparing to take.

‘They had a quorum’
“They had a quorum. You need one third of the 111 MPs present, and they had more than 37. They presented a Budget to themselves, the government MPs and they voted on it, so the Budget is passed and they also voted to adjourn the parliament to 20th of April, 2021,” Kabuni said.

A vote of no confidence seems unlikely in April next year because it would be just a year or so out from the election.

Kabuni said such a move would prompt the Governor-General to dissolve Parliament and call an early poll.

Earlier today the former Commerce Minister, William Duma, who had stood shoulder to shoulder with the rebel MPs last Friday, rejoined the government, according to Kabuni.

This brought to three the number of MPs who have rejoined the government since the split.

This article is republished by the Pacific Media Centre under a partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

ANALYSIS: By EMTV News

James Marape, Papua New Guinea’s former Finance Minister and the man who led the defections that brought down the Peter O’Neill government, was today elected the country’s eighth prime minister.

Another Highlands leader as member for Tari-Pori, Marape was the power-broker in the moves to shake up the government.

The 48-year-old politician, first elected to Parliament in 2007 beginning his portfolio as Secretary for Works under Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare, eventually moving to become Education Minister and then Finance Minister under Peter O’Neill – until last month when he led the breakaway.

READ MORE: Bryan Kramer – Watch for ‘The deceit, the backstabbing and the clowns’

Continual disagreement’s with O’Neill saw Marape leave his position, resigning as Finance Minister, the first crack in the once solid government dam.

The month that followed, was an arena of intense politicking, punctuated by widespread public dissatisfaction on the leadership of now ex-Prime Minister Peter O’Neill.

Verbal sparring on the one hand, and divisive beliefs on the other, all played out for the country to see.

O’Neill had been a major influence on the state of affairs in a nation teeming with natural resources, and who had been accused on multiple occasions of corruption amid a failing economy.

Camly sidestepping
Earlier this month, O’Neill had appeared unperturbed, calmly sidestepping his opponents in suave fashion before speaker Job Pomat adjourned Parliament.

That three-week hiatus, however, creating a snowball effect that would see Marape build up his own coalition of alliances, with some of the country’s most influential leaders, all answering the calls to his banner.

He adopted Oro Governor Gary Juffa’s slogan “Take back PNG” to maximum effect, using multiple media platforms to get that message across.

It worked.

Marape was the darling of the media, captivating audiences.

With statistical evidence yet to be presented, public reactions so far show Marape as being the most popular leader in the nation.

For observers, Marape comes as a breath of fresh air, bringing with him the vibrancy of youth, against the backdrop of a maturing democracy in Papua New Guinea.

Leadership confidence
The confidence in his leadership was evident, with an overwhelming 101 – 8 votes in Parliament today, ahead of other prime ministerial nominee, another former PM, Sir Mekere Morauta.

Morauta had been Prime Minister under similar circumstances after a political crisis that saw 1999 Prime Minister late Sir William (Bill) Skate deposed.

Moving forward for Marape, the feeling of euphoria will undoubtedly be shortlived.

Papua New Guinea’s current failing economy, a loss of investor confidence and on-going public service issues, will be a major hurdle to be overcome.

Hurdles that have both been inherited from the previous administration in power, and that he had had a contributing hand in, something that he himself admitted to when queried three weeks ago about the controversial Swiss bank UBS dealings regarding Oil Search share acquisitions which were subsequently released by the PNG Ombudsman Commission.

And with these issues only a fraction of what needs to be addressed, a looming 2022 election gives Marape little time to make any serious changes.

And while there is the aura of euphoria, scepticism still remains, with Morauta declaring “we have a new prime minister but the same government”.

Barrage of criticism
Prime Minister Marape knows the level of accountability that he will be held to, with Papua New Guinea’s 8 million citizens, and outspoken parliamentarians all watching – one of whom is the firebrand Bryan Kramer whose constant barrage of criticism over the past two years has seen the public now more politics-savvy than ever before.

Marape is quite attuned to what the nation is saying.

In his inaugural speech, Prime Minister Marape paid heed to the collective influences that will shape his time in office.

“I am encouraged and strengthened and comforted by the fact that I have energy, youth and strength and stamina in many first-timers and second-timers who are in this house on both sides of the floor.”

This formed the crux of one of his arguments in the lead up to today, that it was time for a new generation of leaders to hold the reins of government.

It is no revelation that the old guard of PNG politics is fading into folklore: Sir Mekere, Sir Julius and Paius Wingti, are among the only elder statesmen – Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare and Sir Rabbie Namaliu the only absentees – from PNG’s post-independence era.

More decisions and discussions will follow over the course of Parliament, Papua New Guinea and the international community are watching intensely, Marape’s opportunity has come, and with it, the burden of an office that saw his predecessor relegated.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Prime Minister Peter O’Neill steps down from the top job and hands over the reigns to Sir Julius Chan, leader of Peoples Progress Party. Video: EMTV News

By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific

Papua New Guinean Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has announced that he will step down from the role, after weeks of defections from his coalition government.

O’Neill held a press conference yesterday in Port Moresby, indicating that he would resign “in the coming days”.

After almost eight years in the position, he said he would hand over the leadership to Sir Julius Chan, a 79-year-old who has had two previous stints as prime minister.

READ MORE: PNG’s O’Neill announces he is stepping down as PM

The prime minister’s resignation is not final until after it is received in writing by the Governor-General. O’Neill said he would visit the Queen’s representative this week, to “clear the way for the Parliament to vote for the next prime minister”.

However, the prime minister yesterday afternoon conceded that recent political movements had indicated to him there was a need for change in leadership.

Pressure has been building for weeks on O’Neill’s coalition government with an exodus of MPs, including senior ministers, from his People’s National Congress party, joining the opposition.

As of Friday, with the defection of William Duma’s United Resources Party, the opposition was claiming to have 62 MPs in the 111-seat Parliament, as it sought to oust the prime minister by a parliamentary motion.

‘Change of direction’
Today, O’Neill appeared alongside Sir Julius and other leaders of coalition parties.

“We have agreed to a change of direction, that the leadership of our government will be now handed over to Sir Julius Chan, who is a veteran leader and one of the founding fathers of our great nation,” O’Neill said at the press conference.

“In consultation with coalition government partners, we have decided to ask Sir Julius Chan to lead the team in government for the remainder of this term of Parliament,” O’Neill said in a statement issued later on Sunday.

Usually, under provisions of PNG’s constitution, the deputy prime minister takes up the vacancy when a prime minister steps down. In this case, Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel has been overlooked by O’Neill in favour of the leader of a coalition partner, the People’s Progress Party.

The plan to pass the reins to Sir Julius comes after O’Neill recently lost the large majority support he had enjoyed in Parliament since 2011, as a flood of grievances over PNG’s ailing economy, deteriorating basic services and festering corruption allegations finally turned the tide against him.

‘Government in waiting’
Following O’Neill’s announcement, the opposition held a press conference at its Laguna Hotel base. Leading figures in the group said they would not believe O’Neill’s announcement until he formally resigned.

Opposition power broker James Marape, whose resignation as Finance Minister last month sparked the exodus, cautioned over “mixed signals” from the government.

“There is no such thing as the prime minister resigning and handing over leadership to someone who is not even a minister of state. That is legally not correct.”

Leading opposition MPs described their group as a government in waiting. Over recent weeks, lobbying between MPs has been intense, with at least two more government MPs joining the opposition today.

Environment Minister John Pundari made it to the Laguna just before the opposition decided to lock the gates of the complex at midday today, while another pair of government MPs looking to join the fray this afternoon were turned away.

But O’Neill, speaking from his base at the Crown Hotel, argued that maintaining a government based around his People’s National Congress and the remnants of his coalition would be best for the interests of political stability.

‘Dangerous mix’
“There is no way that I could stand by and allow the opposition to come into government with their dangerous mix of wild ideas,” O’Neill said.

A political, and potentially constitutional, crisis is brewing, because O’Neill’s move to hand over the role of prime minister to Sir Julius will not be readily accepted by opposition MPs.

Marape warned that attempts could be made by the O’Neill regime to sabotage processes of Parliament at this important juncture.

Yet with the opposition appearing to have a majority, a vote for a new prime minister is likely in the coming days once Parliament resumes tomorrow.

• This article is published under the Pacific Media Centre’s content partnership with Radio New Zealand.
• More PNG stories

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By RNZ Pacific

Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister Peter O’Neill has announced that is resigning, citing a need for change, after weeks of unrest in the government.

O’Neill held a press conference today in Port Moresby, announcing he would stand down “in the coming days”

After almost eight years in the position, he said he would hand over the leadership to Sir Julius Chan, who has been prime minister three times before.

READ MORE: Background to Peter O’Neill’s resignation

O’Neill’s resignation is not final until it is received in writing by the Governor-General.

However, the prime minister this afternoon conceded that recent political movements had indicated to him there was a need for change in leadership.

Pressure has been building for weeks on O’Neill’s coalition government with an exodus of its MPs joining the opposition, including senior ministers and MPs from his People’s National Congress party.

As of Friday, with the defection of William Duma’s United Resources Party, the opposition was claiming to have 62 MPs in the 111-seat parliament, as it sought to oust the prime minister by a parliamentary motion.

‘Change of direction’
Today, O’Neill appeared alongside his deputy Charles Abel, Sir Julius and other leaders of coalition parties.

“We have agreed to a change of direction, that the leadership of our government will be now handed over to Sir Julius Chan, who is a veteran leader and one of the founding fathers of our great nation,” O’Neill said.

He said that the way would be paved for new leadership in Papua New Guinea. Sir Julius would effectively be an acting prime minister until Parliament decides on the position.

With the opposition appearing to have a majority, a vote by MPs for a new prime minister is likely in the coming days once Parliament resumes on Tuesday.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific

Political fallout from a controversial loan taken on by Papua New Guinea’s government five years ago could hinder rather than help attempts to remove Prime Minister Peter O’Neill.

O’Neill and other leading officials have been referred by the Ombudsman Commission to a Leadership Tribunal over a US$1.2 billion loan his government took on from Swiss-based investment bank UBS in 2014.

The ombudman’s report, which was completed last December but only handed to the Parliament Speaker, Job Pomat, late last month, is yet to be tabled in the house.

READ MORE: UBS loan to PNG may have breached 15 laws

LISTEN: The controversial loan saga on RNZ Dateline Pacific

However, the report has been published at a time when the parliamentary opposition, bolstered by recent defections from the government, is planning for a vote of no confidence against the prime minister later this month.

The UBS loan was nominally taken for the state to buy a 10 percent stake in oil and gas producer Oil Search, a major player in PNG’s burgeoning petroleum sector.

In last week’s heated Parliament debate the prime minister said it was imperative for the state to regain Oil Search shares.

These were earlier lost after being mortgaged by PNG’s Sir Michael Somare government in 2009 as it sought finance from the United Arab Emirates-based International Petroleum Investment Company to gain equity in the country’s first LNG gas project.

‘Strategic investment’
“The Treasury officials said the Oil Search investment is a strategic investment to government,” O’Neill explained in Parliament last week.

“So the company decided to offer the government of Papua New Guinea at a special issue so we can secure the 10 percent. Why? Because Oil Search, even today, is the biggest company in PNG, is the biggest taxpayer in PNG.

However, the report reveals that the Ombudsman found the prime minister failed to present the government’s proposal on the borrowing of a loan, from UBS’ Australia branch, in Parliament for debate and approval as required by the constitution.

O’Neill was found to have misled the cabinet into approving the loan, among other irregularities. But he was not alone.

The commission’s findings also implicate the former Finance Minister, James Marape, who was found to have signed off the loan’s approval as minister despite knowledge of irregularities and “that his actions were improper”.

According to the opposition’s justice spokesman, Kerenga Kua, the deal and O’Neill’s lead role in pushing it through were very suspicious. He said the greatest transgression in the deal was its commercial injustice.

“In the end we only held that share for about twelve months before it was foreclosed by UBS and sold. So you see we don’t have those shares in our hands any more, because the state fell into default on that loan arrangement.”

Stock price fell
PNG was forced to sell its Oil Search shares when the stock price fell sharply, incurring a big loss. On the other hand, UBS profited around US$83 million in fees, interest and trading revenue from the deal.

Kua said the financial professionals involved in arranging the huge loan must have known the transaction was bound to fail for PNG.

“They would have seen this as a scam, a real professional scam. Because everybody knew of the state’s financial vulnerability, and its lack of cash flow to pay for that loan,” Kua said.

“Yet they created a monster, so that within a matter of months it would fall into default, and then you foreclose on the asset, cover yourself. But what are the people of PNG left with? Nothing, except a debt of 3 billion kina [NZ$1.4 billion].”

But an issue over which the opposition has been attacking O’Neill for years is now proving problematic for the MP seeking to replace the prime minister.

Marape, who resigned last month as minister and left the ruling party, has emerged as the opposition’s choice for alternative prime minister in a motion of confidence against O’Neill which it lodged last week.

But along with other officials, including Government Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari, Treasury Secretary Dairi Vele, and the Central Bank Governor Loi Bakani, Marape has also been referred by the Ombudsman Commission for investigation under the leadership code over the UBS loan. This undermines his own recent attacks on the prime minister.

Questions unsuccessful
Standing on opposite sides of the Parliament chamber for the first time last week, Marape questioned the prime minister about the loan process. The questions were unsuccessful because the prime minister was able to remind Marape that he was also involved in those decisions himself.

While it remains to be seen whether O’Neill, Marape and others will face the Leadership Tribunal, the opposition continues to portray the prime minister as the lead transgressor in the UBS saga and other controversies.

The former Health Minister, Sir Puka Temu, who also left the government last month, has portrayed the prime minister as exerting too much control on state departments, overriding the authority of ministers.

“I resigned because I saw things were not working well. There were a lot of corrupt practices and there were governance processes from agencies and bodies of the state that the leaders did not support,” Sir Puka said.

O’Neill has denied any wrongdoing, characterising the investigation as politically motivated, and part of a “dirty game” by the opposition as it tries to lure support to change the government.

He has indicated that the issue would be the subject of a judicial review.

Although he was a member of the last Somare government in its later stages, O’Neill has placed blame with that regime for placing PNG in a weak position when it sought finance in Abu Dhabi for the LNG Project.

Country ‘mortgaged’
“When they borrowed that money, when the mortgaged not only Oil Search, but they borrowed every state-owned entity of this country,” O’Neill explained.

“So if we wanted to sell one of the planes in Air Niugini, we had to ask the permission of the Arabs. If we wanted to sell one of the buildings in any of the SOEs, we had to ask the Arabs. So literally, we were mortgaged to the Arabs.”

But Kua said the O’Neill government’s purchase of Oil Search shares under the controversial UBS loan was a far more shoddy deal than the IPIC transaction.

“The IPIC transaction led to PNG owning 19.26 percent in the PNG LNG Project. That equity is still there and annually we are receiving over a billion kina in revenue from that project,” he explained.

The UBS loan was opposed from an early stage by the then Treasurer Don Polye, who ultimately refused to sign off on the deal before resigning in protest.

Polye insisted that the loan required parliamentary approval, warning that taking the loan on would break the country’s official debt ceiling.

The former Kandep MP was also not involved in the negotiations with Oil Search on the purchase of the shares.

‘Cup of coffee’
According to the Ombudsman report, the agreement to buy the shares was reached “over a cup of coffee” in a swanky Port Moresby hotel when O’Neill and Vele met with Oil Search’s managing director Peter Botten and its board chair, Gerea Aopi.

The government’s purchase of the Oil Search shares allowed the company to buy a stake in the Elk Antelope gas field in PNG’s Gulf province. This resource is being developed by French company Total SA to be the second major LNG project in PNG.

The Papua LNG Project agreement was signed by Total and the government last month.

However, the agreement immediately preceded the exodus from O’Neill’s ruling party, and was cited as a causal factor in the move by several of the MPs who resigned, including  Marape.

Warning that interests of provinces and landowners were not being protected, the MPs lamented that promised equity and royalty benefits from PNG’s first big LNG gas project, based in Marape’s province, had still not transpired, 10 years after that project agreement.

Meanwhile, the Chief Ombudsman, Richard Pagen, says the commission submitted its final UBS report to the Parliament Speaker, Job Pomat, on April 30.

Asserting that the commission has jurisdiction over the prime minister’s office, Pagen said the Speaker must table the report within 8 sitting days of receiving it.

Public interest
However, he added that the commission decided to publish the report as it considered it a matter of public interest

Only one day of Parliament sitting has lapsed since the handover of the report. That was last Tuesday, May 7, the same day the opposition lodged its motion of no confidence, when Pomat adjourned parliament until May 28.

PNG’s Attorney-General has filed a Supreme Court application to which could yet delay the confidence vote against the prime minister proceeding.

Opposition MPs say they’re confident that the vote will go ahead. The group is not likely to change Marape’s nomination as alternative prime minister, but his involvement in the UBS loan may yet count against him.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Seven Pangu Pati members join the breakaway camp hoping to ousted Prime Minister Peter O’Neill. Video: EMTV News

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

All five MPs from Sandaun province have now joined Papua New Guinea’s breakaway camp at Port Moresby’s Laguna Hotel after the return of Sandaun Governor Tony Wouwou.

Wearing a Trukai Fun Run t-shirt, Wouwou appeared quite jovial as he was welcomed by other MPs into the leadership crisis camp.

And the breakaway camp now believe they have the numbers to oust Prime Minister Peter O’Neill as the rival groups shape up for the no-confidence vote this week.

READ MORE: PNGi investigates corruption, nertworks and the issues

About 1000 extra police are reportedly being deployed in the capital for tomorrow.

Scott Waide of EMTV News reported last night that during the past week Wouwou had been attacked and ridiculed on social media after he had initially appeared in an opposition news conference.

Then later – on the same day – Wouwou declared that he was a “diehard member” of O’Neill’s ruling People’s National Congress (PNC).

“We have the member for Vanimo Green, the member for Aitape-Lumi, the Member for Nuku and now we have the Governor,” former Defence Minister Solan Mirisim said in the news conference.

Consent needed
“I am the here as the Member for Telefomin.”

Various MPs, including East Sepik Governor Allan Bird, defended Wouwou, saying he needed to seek consent from his people before officially moving to the opposition.

Vanimo-Green MP Belden Namah, who did a head count this afternoon, said the camp now had two-thirds of the governors in the country.

He added that it was a sizable figure that expressed how provinces were feeling.

Wouwou’s arrival this afternoon now adds one more MP to the camp, taking the total to 58. Fifty seven MPs are needed to defeat O’Neill’s government in the 111-member Haus of Parliament.

Earlier at the weekend, seven members of the Pangu Pati – PNG’s first and oldest political party founded by Sir Michael Somare – had joined the breakaway camp led by former Finance Minister James Marape who quit O’Neill’s government last month.

Soon after resigning from Pangu, the MPs were welcomed at Laguna by Marape and other leaders.

Not managed well
Speaking on their behalf, Central Governor Robert Agarobe said their stand was to change government leadership.

Morobe Governor Ginson Sinou said the country had not been managed well despite the vast mineral and forestry resources available.

Sinou said this was the time to stop the current leadership for the good of the nation.

Carmella Gware of Loop PNG reported that Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel said the PNC “remains solid”.

Addressing the media on Saturday evening at the Crown Hotel, in the presence of Milne Bay Governor John Luke Crittin, Abel stressed the PNC’s teamwork “despite our good brothers leaving us”.

“We certainly take on board all those issues that were raised by our brothers and issues that were raised by myself,” he said.

‘Understanding attitude’
“And I’m so thankful that the party and our Prime Minister has the understanding attitude that they have, we go forward together, we take on those issues, and as a team, we continue to respond to those issues.”

RNZ Pacific’s Johnny Blades reported opposition MPs were “quietly confident” that they had the momentum to remove O’Neill as his government “reels from a series of resignations”.

He said the opposition Laguna Hotel camp was offering an “open door” for any more government MPs who wished to join their bid to remove the prime minister.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz