yutok | Monday 4th July, 2011 |
NA leader to be decided soon
Who will be the next leader of the National Alliance (NA) Party?
That is the big question that Papua New Guineans are asking as they watch and wait to see who will take over as leader of the most powerful political party ever to come out of PNG politics since independence in 1975.
The position of party leader has fallen vacant since the family of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare retired him from politics last week due to his poor health condition. When that decision is formalised, after the process to retire the PM started by cabinet last week comes to a conclusion, Sir Michael does not only leave the post of PM and as MP for East Sepik Province, he also leaves the post of leader of NA, which he helped founded and led for the last nine or so years.
The NA constitution clearly provides the guidelines on how a leader is succeeded in the event the incumbent retires, loses his seat in a election or the position becomes vacant because the leader is unable to perform due to ill health. Section 17 of the NA constitution states that the four regional deputies of the party qualify automatically to contest and the one that wins, becomes the new leader. The process to replace Sir Michael Somare as leader of NA had started well before he had gone to Singapore for his medical check and hospitalisation. It was a question of when the election was to take place.
If we go by the NA constitution, Don Polye, Patrick Pruaitch, Ano Pala and Fidelis Semoso will be the candidates as they qualify to contest. Pruaitch, however is most certainly out of the race as a Supreme Court ruling last Friday points out that by the operation of the National Constitution, he is suspended from office because he faces a leadership tribunal over misconduct in office charges. That leaves the race to the other three leaders, however Mr Semoso may also be automatically suspended if the Public Prosecutor refers him to a leadership tribunal. There are other NA leaders like Sam Abal, Paul Tienstien, Mark Maipakai and Arthur Somare who are senior members from the party that may contest for the post. Somare, like Pruaitch is automatically suspended from office, because he too is facing a leadership tribunal. The tussle for the NA leadership is already dividing the ruling party in Government. Though party members are trying really hard to deny this, there is a clear division between the faction led by Polye and the other led by Abal. The news that the party was moving to resolve this issue before the next sitting of Parliament is good news, for NA supporters around the country. By July next year, the writs for the 2012 national elections will be issued and it is important for NA that it goes into the elections as a united force.
Every political party in Parliament right now is preparing to go into the elections and as usual, they will fight NA at all fronts to win votes and form the new government. The preparations for the elections are going smoothly. The PNG Electoral Commission and the Police are working together with the Inter departmental committee on elections, to make sure that the coming elections must be safe and secure for everyone to exercise their right to cast their vote. The report about tribal fighting in Enga and the use of firearms in these ethnic clashes goes to show that the build-up of firearms in rural communities in the Highlands is real. The police are very well aware of what to expect in the Highlands and are making their own preparations and they have submitted a budget to the National Government for funding.
The force is hoping that this money will be provided to them, much of it in the November budget, but if the government fails them, their entire plan will be thrown into disarray. Let’s hope this does not happen.
That is the big question that Papua New Guineans are asking as they watch and wait to see who will take over as leader of the most powerful political party ever to come out of PNG politics since independence in 1975.
The position of party leader has fallen vacant since the family of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare retired him from politics last week due to his poor health condition. When that decision is formalised, after the process to retire the PM started by cabinet last week comes to a conclusion, Sir Michael does not only leave the post of PM and as MP for East Sepik Province, he also leaves the post of leader of NA, which he helped founded and led for the last nine or so years.
The NA constitution clearly provides the guidelines on how a leader is succeeded in the event the incumbent retires, loses his seat in a election or the position becomes vacant because the leader is unable to perform due to ill health. Section 17 of the NA constitution states that the four regional deputies of the party qualify automatically to contest and the one that wins, becomes the new leader. The process to replace Sir Michael Somare as leader of NA had started well before he had gone to Singapore for his medical check and hospitalisation. It was a question of when the election was to take place.
If we go by the NA constitution, Don Polye, Patrick Pruaitch, Ano Pala and Fidelis Semoso will be the candidates as they qualify to contest. Pruaitch, however is most certainly out of the race as a Supreme Court ruling last Friday points out that by the operation of the National Constitution, he is suspended from office because he faces a leadership tribunal over misconduct in office charges. That leaves the race to the other three leaders, however Mr Semoso may also be automatically suspended if the Public Prosecutor refers him to a leadership tribunal. There are other NA leaders like Sam Abal, Paul Tienstien, Mark Maipakai and Arthur Somare who are senior members from the party that may contest for the post. Somare, like Pruaitch is automatically suspended from office, because he too is facing a leadership tribunal. The tussle for the NA leadership is already dividing the ruling party in Government. Though party members are trying really hard to deny this, there is a clear division between the faction led by Polye and the other led by Abal. The news that the party was moving to resolve this issue before the next sitting of Parliament is good news, for NA supporters around the country. By July next year, the writs for the 2012 national elections will be issued and it is important for NA that it goes into the elections as a united force.
Every political party in Parliament right now is preparing to go into the elections and as usual, they will fight NA at all fronts to win votes and form the new government. The preparations for the elections are going smoothly. The PNG Electoral Commission and the Police are working together with the Inter departmental committee on elections, to make sure that the coming elections must be safe and secure for everyone to exercise their right to cast their vote. The report about tribal fighting in Enga and the use of firearms in these ethnic clashes goes to show that the build-up of firearms in rural communities in the Highlands is real. The police are very well aware of what to expect in the Highlands and are making their own preparations and they have submitted a budget to the National Government for funding.
The force is hoping that this money will be provided to them, much of it in the November budget, but if the government fails them, their entire plan will be thrown into disarray. Let’s hope this does not happen.
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