Tamate to prosecute until next Thursday

By JULIA DAIA BORE

 

ACTING Public Prosecutor Jim Wala Tamate will officially vacate his acting position of two years next Thursday, The National reports.

He will be replaced on the same day by his successor, Camillus Sambua, a senior lawyer who had worked with the public prosecutor’s office for a number of years.

The official gazettal notice of the appointment of Sambua as acting public prosecutor and revocation of Tamate appeared in last Thursday’s gazettal No. G58, dated March 3.

This meant that Tamate would act in the position until next Thursday.

He is also expected to attend the start of the leadership tribunal tomorrow when the prosecution lawyer will deliver the charges of misconduct in office against Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare.

The prime minister has been charged with failing to file his annual returns to the Ombudsman Commission between 1994 and 1997.

All three members of the tribunal, ex-judges of the common law jurisdiction from abroad, are expected in the country today.

They will be sworn into office by the governor-general to take up their posts as members of the leadership tribunal.

Tamate told The National yesterday that due to the controversy over his revocation as chief public prosecutor, it was agreed that another senior prosecutor within the office would take the leading role at the tribunal.

He said that agreement would also affect Sambua.

Long-serving senior public prosecutor Kaluwin Pondros has been tasked the job as leading prosecutor at the tribunal.