House urged to consider bid to oust government

National, Normal
Source:

The National –Thursday, January 6, 2011

 By JEFFREY ELAPA

MEMBER for Abau Sir Puka Temu has called on acting Speaker Francis Marus to entertain a planned vote of no-confidence motion against the government.

Sir Puka is now an independent candidate in the middle bench after leaving the deputy prime minister’s post last July in a failed move to oust the Somare-led government. 

He said he was negotiating with some of the disgruntled government backbenchers and few key members of the current cabinet and was confident of toppling the Somare-led government.

According to government sources, some of the government MPs were not happy with the manner in which decisions were made at the top level by a few cabinet ministers, while most of the members of the government did not have any say.

He said the opposition was ready to make another attempt at a vote of no-confidence move against the government, but that would depend on whether or not the acting speaker allows the motion when it meets next Tuesday to aapoint a governor-general.

“The acting speaker must take the motion as a matter of national interest and allow the parliamentary and democratic system to prevail.” 

Sir Puka added that if Marus did not entertain the vote of no-confidence motion, then the opposition would take him to court for not following the democratic system of government.

He appealed to other members in government to look at current controversial issues involving ministers in the current government, which indicated that there was an urgent need to change the government of the day.

Sir Puka said the alternative government would solve some of the problems now faced by resource-rich landowners of the PNG LNG project sites in Southern Highlands when the opposition gets into office.

Marus,  in an interview, told The National that the nomination and election of the governor-general was the main business of parliament and it would take precedence over other business as instructed by the court and that he would not entertain any other business.

However, according to sources, the acting speaker is likely to adjourn parliament to May, but there were also talks that he might allow the motion to take place.