Court of Appeal to hear Attorney General’s challenge of High Court’s ruling
BY MEVILLE TITIULU
The Court of Appeal will this morning hear the appeal by the Attorney General against a High Court decision that favoured the opposition Coalition and ordered Parliament to be convened so a Motion of No Confidence could be debated.
The dispute follows the High Court victory for the majority opposition coalition and comes amid heightened political tension over whether Parliament should be called to test the confidence in Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele’s leadership.
The hearing is scheduled for 9.30am in Courtroom 1.
The appeal, filed by Attorney General John Muria Jnr on Wednesday, April 15, included an application to stay the High Court’s orders as filed together with the Sworn Statement of the Prime Minister.
The application for stay was heard and granted by the Court of Appeal Justices on Thursday, April 16.
The stay relates to a ruling by Chief Justice Sir Albert Palmer delivered on Tuesday, April 14, which directed Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele to convene Parliament within three days so the pending Motion of No Confidence (MONC) can be debated.
The stay means that the High Court’s order is temporarily paused while the Court of Appeal determines the substantive appeal.
Justice Howard Lowry told parties at the last hearing that the court must take a balanced approach by hearing the substantive appeal to minimise prejudice in a sensitive political context. Given the short notice, he said the court must address serious constitutional issues promptly — a factor that contributed to the decision to grant the stay.
Given the public interest and urgency of the matter, the Court of Appeal has indicated a tentative target of Monday, April 27, for delivering judgment.
The three appeal justices — Chief Justice Sir Gibuma Gibbs Salika, Howard Lowry, and Gina Nott — had directed parties that the appeal book be filed by Friday last week. Written submissions to be filed by Monday this week.
The appellants are the Governor General of Solomon Islands, The Prime Minister of Solomon Islands, the Speaker of National Parliament of Solomon Islands and the Attorney General (AG).
Attorney General Muria Jnr and his legal team from the AG Chambers represent all of the appellants.
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