By Georgina Maka’a
Prime Minister Matthew Wale has sacked Finance and Treasury Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo, as he moves to shore up his government ahead of Monday’s no-confidence motion.
Lilo, the leader of the Solomon Islands Party for Rural Advancement (SIPRA), one of the six parties forming the GREAT Coalition, has been replaced by Fataleka MP Rexon Ramofafia.
“…..yes he’s been sacked,” a GREAT Coalition insider told In-depth Solomons.
“Prime Minister Wale believes, and has the evidence, that Lilo was one of those behind the motion of no-confidence,” the insider added.
Ramofafia, a member of the Opposition bench, was sworn in this morning, alongside Central Makira MP Nestor Ghiro and West Kwara’ae MP Alfred Tuasulia.
Tuasulia was also a member of the Opposition, while Ghiro was a government backbencher.
Ghiro takes over the Home Affairs portfolio from Manasseh Maelanga, while Tuasulia becomes Minister for Justice and Legal Affairs, replacing Clezy Rore.
The changes come less than a week after Maelanga, the former Home Affairs minister and East Malaita MP, filed a notice of motion of no confidence against Wale.
He submitted to Parliament last Saturday after Wale left for the Pacific Islands Forum leaders summit in Palau.
The motion forced Wale to cut short his trip and return to Honiara to confront the political crisis.
Maelanga accuses Wale of repeatedly making decisions on matters of national importance without properly consulting Cabinet or obtaining its approval, undermining collective Cabinet responsibility, representative democracy and good governance.
His last public engagement as Finance Minister was on Tuesday, when he launched the Government’s consultation on its proposed tax reforms.
At that event, he denied being behind the no-confidence motion.
Asked about the political turmoil, Lilo told journalists he was not behind the motion and challenged the media to get its facts right.
He did not, however, directly say whether he supported the motion, instead telling journalists: “Let’s allow the democratic process to take its course.”
While Lilo gets the axe, Harry Kuma, who resigned in support of the motion, has been retained in Cabinet after explaining to Wale that his resignation was not intentional.
Kuma reportedly told the Prime Minister that Maelanga had misled him into believing there would be a “mass resignation of ministers”.
Wale accepted Kuma’s explanation and decided to keep him in government.
Prior to the motion being filed, the GREAT Coalition has the support of 32 MPs. It’s not clear what the numbers are now.
Parliament resumes on Monday, when Maelanga is expected to move the motion of no confidence.
