| Politics/ Solomon Islands: SOGAVARE EVADES YET ANOTHER LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE |
Uses legal tactician to devise ammunition
Evan Wasuka
Parliamentary meetings are usually an exciting time in the Solomon Islands capital, Honiara. Add in the controversies of Manasseh Sogavare’s reign so far, it is not surprising that every gathering of the country’s House of Representatives has been accompanied by moves to oust him.
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Time for a break... members of parliament leaving the p arliamentary complex. Photo: Evan Wasuka
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While Sir Michael Somare fought his way back into power in Papua New Guinea, his Melanesian counterpart across the sea was using all his political acumen to keep his government coalition intact as the Opposition launched its latest move to topple the government.
The issues dominating the August no-confidence motion were the Julian Moti Affair and the rearming of the police force—which was withdrawn ahead of the confidence vote.
Unlike the previous motions, the August sitting involved only 47 of the country’s 50 MPs because of the deaths of two parliamentarians—former prime minister Bartholomew Ulufa’alu and Public Service Minister Joses Sanga, and government backbencher Francis Zama’s 20-month jail sentence still stuck in the appeal process.
As the big day drew near, those making the loudest noise, particularly the civil society and opposing political groups who had written to individual parliamentarians to remove or give their support to Sogavare were sidelined as the main protagonists took centre stage.
Fono’s arrest: Just days away from the scheduled confidence motion, Opposition Leader Fred Fono was arrested after being accused by Sogavare of allegedly paying S$50,000 to a government minister to defect.
Prosecutors charged Fono with conspiracy to commit unlawful purpose, while a misconduct in office charge was added to the charge sheet a week later.
Although the arrest was no surprise with the case hanging over Fono’s head ever since the prime minister revealed the alleged cash bribe to the media, its timing was at the very least convenient for the government.
With the Opposition backpedalling, the government moved into the offensive with legal tactician Julian Moti taking the lead role by way of three court cases questioning why the Speaker had allowed the motion to proceed.
Much to government’s frustration—Speaker Sir Peter Kenilorea—pushed on with the motion and described the court cases as delaying tactics on the part of the government.
The deciding factor, he said, was that the summons for the court cases arrived after the motion was already put into notice.
With political lobbying headed into an overdrive, government members dined in style at a local restaurant the night before while rumours were circulating that under the cover of darkness another group of government members were reported to be in talks with the opposition.
The opposition was also accused of playing dirty. According to East Honiara MP Charles Dausabea, these politicians were plotting his arrest and that of the prime minister by using ex-militants to lodge “false” criminal charges against them.
He told parliament that a letter signed by a senior opposition member was doing the rounds, encouraging ex-militants to go to the police to reveal his and the PM’s alleged roles in the June 2000 coup which ousted the government of then Prime Minister Ulufa’alu.
Dausabea said this was aimed at reducing government’s numbers ahead of the no confidence vote.
As the hours to the motion counted down—political commentators were still uncertain who had the upper hand with government claiming the support of more than 30 MPs while the Opposition counted the support of 18 MPs and claimed support of 10 government MPs who were expected to cross the floor when the motion was moved.
And when it came to the tabling of the motion—as expected—the Speaker refused to follow the attorney-general’s advice to postpone the motion.
In rejecting Moti’s advice, Kenilorea said to do otherwise would be to suppress the parliamentarians’ right to choose their leader.
“The crux of this issue is whether this Parliament has confidence in the government. No action in any court can decide the matter, only elected members of Parliament,” Kenilorea told the house.
The prime minister reacted by calling on the Speaker to step down and remove himself from hearing the motion because he had expressed public opinion on the Julian Moti issue.
Kenilorea refused, saying he would not politicise the Speaker’s post and the temperature and chamber shot up a notch with Sogavare threatening that government would not take part in the debate.
The drama was curtailed by the mover of the motion, Opposition member Edward Huniehu who backed down in the face of a legal challenge, opting to wait until the High Court ruled on the cases before moving the motion.
“I have no intention to create animosity, acrimony and confusion by moving this motion now...I have decided that this motion will be deferred,” said Huniehu.
The second motion
While the government members enjoyed a celebratory lunch at a local hotel, a second motion of no confidence was being filed by South Malaita parliamentarian, William Haomae.
Haomae, whose February motion to oust Sogavare was dismissed because of a technicality, was now seeking to continue the campaign to remove the prime minister.
With Fridays reserved exclusively for Opposition business, the only requirement for a motion of no confidence is a seven-working-day notice, so long as the government which is in charge of the parliamentary business schedule doesn’t choose to end the sitting of the house earlier.
The Opposition backed by veteran lawyer Gabrielle Suri raced against time to strike out the government’s case in order to have the motion freely debated before the end of parliament’s current meeting.
In the meantime, parliament rocketed through its business an S$82 million supplementary budget bill, a magistrate’s court amendment bill and a state-owned enterprises bill as the battle between government and Opposition shifted from the Parliament floor to the courts, with Moti, as expected, playing a key role.
Severe blow: Even the usual verbal discharge in the media ceased with the action now moving to the judiciary. But the Opposition was dealt a major blow with the Speaker rejecting the second no confidence motion because it contravened the “same question rule,” — that a motion of no confidence cannot be moved on the same issue in two consecutive sittings of the house.
Kenilorea ruled that the Haomae motion was inherently the same as the one brought before the house a week earlier by Huniehu.
“There is clearly no change in circumstances between the first motion and the one submitted by Honourable Haomae.
“And for this reason, I am inclined to rule that the subject matter of both motions is substantively the same and as such the new motion contravenes the same question rule that is therefore disqualified by Standing Orders 27-3-G,” said Kenilorea.
The reaction from the government was twofold—first with Moti immediately the legal action against the Opposition members and Speaker.
Now that the questions have been conclusively settled by the Speaker...we need not trouble the High Court with further agitation on that matter,” Moti said in a statement.
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