by Ofani Eremae
Chief Justice Sir Albert Palmer today ordered Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele to convene Parliament within the next three days.
In a two-hour ruling, Sir Albert told a packed courtroom that the prime minister had failed in his constitutional duty by refusing to call Parliament after losing the numbers to remain in power.
He said that while the prime minister has the power to convene Parliament, the Constitution does not allow him to delay or avoid doing so.
“In the current political situation, the prime minister has only two options,” Sir Albert said in his ruling.
“Resign or face Parliament.
“But he cannot avoid Parliament.”
Sir Albert said that if the prime minister continues to refuse to call Parliament, the Governor-General can exercise his powers to summon it.
Manele lost his majority after 19 government MPs—including 12 ministers—defected last month to join the Opposition.
Calling themselves the New Coalition, the group now commands the support of 28 of the 50 MPs.
They have since filed a motion of no confidence in Parliament, which has matured and is now awaiting debate.
The group also wrote to Governor-General Sir David Tiva Kapu, requesting him to convene Parliament. However, Sir David responded that he does not have the power to summon Parliament.
Manele, on the other hand, has said he will only call Parliament at the “appropriate time”.
These responses prompted the New Coalition to take the matter to court.
In his ruling, Sir Albert stated that a motion of no confidence is a constitutional process that the prime minister must not ignore.
To do so, he added, would be a failure of his constitutional duty.
Lawyer for the New Coalition, Gabriel Suri, welcomed today’s ruling and thanked the chief justice for delivering the decision within a short period of time.
“We see the ruling as a further development of our constitutional law,” Suri said.
“The chief justice has considered a range of case authorities, analysed the facts, and arrived at this ruling,” he added.
Attorney-General John Muria Jnr said he will appeal the decision.
Muria did not disclose the basis for the proposed appeal but said that several issues they raised were not addressed in the ruling.
Here’s a summary of Chief Justice Sir Albert Palmer’s key findings on the “unconstitutional conduct” of the Prime Minister today:
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Constitutional Duty – The Prime Minister has a constitutional duty to convene parliament.
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Core Finding – Delaying the convening of Parliament after a motion of no confidence has matured is unconstitutional.
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A constitutional duty arises once a motion matures – once a motion of no confidence is validly lodged and the required notice period expires, the Prime Minister has a constitutional obligation to ensure it is heard immediately in Parliament.
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Delay or inaction is unlawful – The court found that failing to bring the motion before Parliament “at the earliest opportunity” is unlawful, as it breaches the Prime Minister’s constitutional duty.
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The Prime Minister cannot block or avoid Parliament – Sir Albert made it clear that the Prime Minister has no constitutional power to delay, obstruct, or frustrate a no-confidence motion once it is ready for debate.
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Delaying Parliament frustrates democracy – By not convening Parliament, the Prime Minister undermines the constitutional mechanism that allows Parliament to test whether he still has majority support – a core principle of democratic government.
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Only two lawful options exist – The Chief Justice emphasised that once majority support is in doubt, the Prime Minister has only two options: Resign, or Face Parliament immediately. Avoiding Parliament altogether is not a lawful option.
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A “constitutional impasse” was created – The court found that delaying Parliament while a valid motion exists creates a constitutional crisis, because the system for testing leadership is being blocked.
More to come…
