From: AAP
February 13, 2012
SIR Michael Somare's son Arthur has vowed to continue the legal
fight to have the O'Neill government turfed out of office after the
Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea adjourned for another week.
The court had convened today and was expected to issue more directions for fresh hearings on the constitutionality of parliament's move to legalise its decision to end the 43-year political career of Sir Michael, 75, late last year.
However, neither side, except lawyers for Deputy Prime Minister Belden Namah, had filed documentation, prompting the court to reschedule its directions hearing until 10.30am (AEDT) next Monday.
"We have decided to hear all the applications who wish to be joined as interveners," Deputy Chief Justice Gibbs Salika said.
Lawyers for the O'Neill government also raised the issue of Sir Michael Somare and his followers appointing heads of departments.
The court had convened today and was expected to issue more directions for fresh hearings on the constitutionality of parliament's move to legalise its decision to end the 43-year political career of Sir Michael, 75, late last year.
However, neither side, except lawyers for Deputy Prime Minister Belden Namah, had filed documentation, prompting the court to reschedule its directions hearing until 10.30am (AEDT) next Monday.
"We have decided to hear all the applications who wish to be joined as interveners," Deputy Chief Justice Gibbs Salika said.
Lawyers for the O'Neill government also raised the issue of Sir Michael Somare and his followers appointing heads of departments.
That ruling sparked a political crisis in
PNG, when there were briefly two police commissioners, two cabinets, two
governors general and two prime ministers.
PNG will hold a general election in June this year.
The writs will be issued in late April, putting the government into caretaker mode.
Outside
the court, Arthur Somare told reporters he would not give up the fight
to have the government of Peter O'Neill thrown out, even if Mr O'Neill
won the election.
"I do not care about my own election," Mr Somare, a suspended MP, said.
"I will pursue this to the end."
He
said he wanted Mr O'Neill, Mr Namah and their supporters to serve "nine
months and a day" for contempt of court for ignoring a Supreme Court
order in December to return Sir Michael to power.
He said he wanted the sentence because convicts who served longer than nine months ere banned from running for parliament.
"Nine months and a day, that's the punchline," he said.
As some of us (very few!!) have maintained since straight after the 12th December decision....
ReplyDelete.. Just as the Supreme Court "let the genie out of the bottle so too must the Supreme Court put the genie back into the bottle and cap it firmly"...
This is the only way forward for PNG!!
Amen to that!
ReplyDelete