By Loretta B Manele

Political considerations, as you know is on emotions and sometimes it’s hard for people to break it down when you think about numbers, calculations because all we want is to push our political agenda.

Peter Kenilorea Junior, leader of the Independent Group expressed this when he contributed to the debate on the Constitution Amendment, Constituent Assembly Sitting Bill 2024 in parliament yesterday.

He said this happens around the world and everywhere around the world it is the same.

Kenilorea Jr also shared a story depicting the above sentiment.

“We know the political sensitivities around this discussion. As you know full well, the first government collapsed because of the discussions around provincial government.

The first ever government during independence or after independence, the first Kenilorea government collapsed because of discussions around provincial government”

Kenilorea Jr stressed that this was because of discussions on how to carry out things and about different ideas around doing things back then.

“They were saying that the then Prime Minister was moving too slowly in trying to consider what the options were while some wanted to go faster”

Moreover, referring to the current debate on the bill, he voiced that he really appreciates how they have been discussing the bill.

“These are very political sensitive issues. That brings back to the point, that I really appreciate how we have been discussing this here”

Kenilorea Jr added that this is very important because it can really become very emotional for many of them especially when it’s political.

“I just want to register my appreciation in terms of how discussions have been held here. I think that’s a sign of us 50 MPs in the 12th Parliament that we love our nation.

I think whatever we want to do, we don’t want to fragment further. We don’t want to disintegrate the modern nation of Solomon Islands”

Kenilorea Jr said he says “modern” because we are nations within a nation in the sense that Solomon Islands is made up of diverse language groups, customs and governance structures of which are traditionally already set in place.

He mentioned that while some of these aspects are whittled away, some are still stronger than others and at the end of the day it’s important because it is our identity.

Kenilorea Jr said he thinks discussion around the bill is important hence they must continue to remain civil and continue to be rational in terms of what it is they want.

“We want the best for the whole collective Solomon Islands, the modern state of Solomon Islands, which is much younger than the many nations that already live within Solomon Islands prior to our independence, prior to us taking that name Solomon Islands even”

By Loretta B Manele

Speaker of parliament, John Patterson Oti briefly spoke on the procedure for withdrawing a motion in parliament yesterday.

He explained that withdrawing a motion is provided for in Standing Order 31 and has two components.

“First, when a member puts on a notice, his or her intention to move a motion, the notice goes on the business paper. This is the notice board, if you like, of all the business to be considered by the house”

He said when the notice satisfies the notice period and, in this instance, referring to the motion of no confidence tabled for yesterday’s parliament sitting, 7 days is required under Section 34.2 of the constitution for a vote of no confidence, that has been satisfied.

“Moving today, tabling today is more than the period of 7 days which is enshrined in Section 34.2 of the constitution”

Oti added that therefore, when a notice satisfies the period, the motion goes on the paper for a particular sitting in which parliament may deal with it.

He also stated that however, before a particular motion is put on the paper, if a member wishes to withdraw the motion by writing to the clerk stating his or her intention, in effect, the motion is removed from the business paper and it is no longer a business for parliament to deal with or to consider.

Oti went on to state that on the other hand, if a motion is put on the order paper for a particular sitting, the member may only withdraw the motion on the floor of parliament.

He said this is because the motion is no longer the member’s business, but it has become the business of the house, and therefore, the house must agree to withdraw it.

“Therefore, this does not simply mean the member announces his or her intention to withdraw the motion. He or she must obtain the permission of the house.

If there is any dissenting voice or some disagreement on the proposed withdrawal, the member must move the motion”

The speaker of parliament concluded that if the member insists on withdrawing the motion, she or he must ask the speaker’s permission to withdraw the motion by moving another motion without notice to withdraw the initial motion.

By Loretta B Manele

Be strong and run the country in a responsible way.

Gordon Darcy Lilo, member of parliament for Central Honiara and chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) voiced these words in parliament yesterday.

Addressing parliament during the motion of no confidence session, he said the situation they are in right now as he sees it, requires good encouragement.

“Be strong. Run the country in a responsible way. Don’t raise rules, you know, for you to derail confidence in running the government of our country”

Lilo stated that as he earlier said, the motion should be on the other side of the fence.

He said since those who have decided to propose this motion have retracted and have left their support in that way.

“I can only say to you, please, do more to hold the vote together. Don’t expose yourself too”

He stressed that they should run a better government for the country and they will support that as they’ve done in the budget.

“So please, think about our people, our beloved country that is struggling. So, please, build that trust. That broken trust. Try to rebuild it”

Lilo expressed that as one of our founding fathers said, in politics, there is no permanent enemy and no permanent friend.

“So, make use of that advice”

BY IRWIN ANGIKI

The motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele has been withdrawn on the floor of parliament by the mover, Gordon Darcy Lilo.

Mr Darcy Lilo, MP for Central Honiara, withdrew the motion citing not having the numbers to continue with the process.

He also told parliament the motion was instigated by government ministers who were ‘disgruntled’ with the governance of the Government for National Unity and Transformation (GNUT).

Yesterday, after Speaker Patterson Oti opened the sitting by reading the rules governing a motion of no confidence, Darcy Lilo asked him to consider a request to defer the motion to December 18.

Apparently, Darcy Lilo had written a letter to the Speaker and the Prime Minister seeking deferment on Sunday night. Darcy Lilo described his request as being based on a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’.

However, Speaker Oti in acknowledging receipt of the letter, told parliament that he was following the law and was not going to stray along to some gentlemen’s agreement, thus denying Darcy Lilo’s request for deferment.

“Yes, I acknowledge your submission to defer the motion from today until further dates, mentioned in that letter was December 18. As you have heard, once it was done in paper it cannot be deferred and also there is no provision in the standing orders for deferment of a motion. There is only a standing order 31.2 whereby a notice you can give to the clerk for the motion to be deferred to another date.

“I stood by that, and therefore I will go by proceedings of the house, based on the standing orders. I will not delve into any gentlemen’s standing orders to govern the proceedings of the house,” Oti said.

Darcy Lilo then brought up a precedent set in a civil case 401 of 2012, paragraph 20 in which the Chief Justice had emphasised in judgement that a motion “before it is moved” remains an exclusive property of the mover.

Using this precedent the Central Honiara MP argued that since he had not yet moved the motion in parliament, it belonged to him, and that he wanted to defer it.

“I want to refer you to civil case 401 of 2012 in paragraph 20 which I think somehow got missed out in your explanation on when a motion is introduced and moved. I think the Chief justice really emphasised that point by inserting it in a bracket ‘before it is moved’, ‘before it is moved’, it still remains an exclusive property of the mover. So, in this situation, as you have relied on section 31, I also intend to utilise that section, 31.2. But, as further qualified in our jurisdiction by the chief justice I am yet to deal with this situation, I am yet to move this motion.

“I feel that I am still outside of that boundary, and therefore it still remains as an exclusive property of the member for Central Honiara,” Darcy Lilo told parliament.

Oti suspended the sitting for an hour to sort out the matter.

When parliament resumed Oti declared that the motion cannot be deferred.

Darcy Lilo conceded and declared a withdrawal to the motion.

Before the suspension, Darcy Lilo had told parliament that the motion was initiated by members of government.

“Situation that we face quite frankly it should have come from the other side of the bench. You know prime minister, you sat with him, you deal with him, so it is yours. The leadership spillage can only come from the other side of the house, not really from this side. And this situation really was instigated by members on the other side of the bench, not from our side, not from our ranks. Whatever motivated them, I think it is quite straight forward, you have always been having disgruntlement among your own selves.”

Meanwhile, Opposition MP Derick Manu’ari posted on his facebook page following the parliament sitting echoing Darcy Lilo’s assertion in parliament that government MPs had been behind the motion of no confidence.

“We do not have the numbers because it was a motion propagated by people within the government. They pressured us to put the motion on notice and assured us of their support. They made the move because they were not happy about how the government was making decisions, on mining, tax exemptions and other inside dealings that they are aware of and have revealed all of that to us. We had 2 meetings together with them as a group supporting the motion to pass. They dragged us on to the brink and suddenly retreated/ retracted at the last minute,” the Opposition MP said.

The motion was eligible to be tabled in parliament on Friday last week, however parliament was about to pass the budget.

Darcy Lilo implied in parliament yesterday that he had agreed for the motion to be tabled yesterday due to the importance of passing the budget on Friday last week.

Prime Minister Manele had told Island Sun over the weekend that GNUT was rock solid heading for the motion with ’29 to 30 members’.

Yesterday, PM Manele confirmed to Island Sun that government now rules with clear majority of 30 MPs.

On Saturday government backbencher MP for Northwest Guadalcanal Francis Belande Sade was sworn in as the new minister for public service, after the former, Rennell and Bellona MP John Tuhaika Jnr had resigned the previous day.