Immediate solution is a must

WE have a situation that is clearly volatile and untenable.
With the O’Neill-led faction yesterday flying in some 70 policemen from outside Port Moresby, there are now two armed police units fa­cing each other. It will only take one trigger-happy policeman to start something that we might all regret.
The police force is placed in a difficult situation. Who does it respond to? There are effectively two police commissioners.
Indeed, who does the entire public service respond to? There are two prime ministers – Peter O’Neill and Sir Michael Somare, two finance secretaries and two of each minister. Should the Somare faction make any more appointments, there will be just about two of every position. This is the meaning of chaos and, clearly, very dangerous for the country.
How long can this impasse continue?
We have suggested two days ago that the decent thing to do would be for both factions to talk it over and possibly form one grand coalition.
It seems to us now that both sides are locked into position in their own camps and, while the two attorneys-general are willing to talk, they might find it difficult to find common ground as well.
Pride is a difficult beast to put down and we are seeing a lot of it on display. Order must be restored and, right now, pride on both sides is standing in the way.
Our current situation is that parliament says O’Neill is the prime minister while the Supreme Court says, by a 3-2 majority, that Sir Michael is the prime minister. 
This puts the governor-general in a difficult position because the PNG Constitution does not give him any discretion. All he is supposed to do is act on the advice of the ministers he appointed, notably the prime minister. 
But which prime minister does he take it from? He has clearly chosen Somare. Now his own position is under threat with the O’Neill faction using its numbers and control of parliament to suspend him and have Speaker Jeffery Nape as the acting governor-general.
While there is a question about which is the legitimate executive government, there is no such question about parliament.
Its actions can and do continue. Its decisions are binding. O’Neill is using his numerical strength to his best advantage.
What is the way out of this situation?
We suggested two days ago that the two sides meet and agree on forming one government to take the country into the general election.
It will mean one man has to step down in favour of the other. In return, ministries can be dished out to members of both sides.
PNG has a democratic form of government that has been described as “government of the people, by the people and for the people”.  Let the people decide who should be the prime minister by holding an election. 
So, it must be to the elections we go.
There are a number of considerations which favour that course. First, the gover­nor-general has the power to issue the writs to start the election process. 
Secondly, what happened when parliament first voted to make O’Neill prime minis­ter was the same as a vote of no-confidence in the Somare government. A vote of no-confidence within 12 months of an election does not change the government but will trigger an election.
So, having an election does no more than do what would have been done if the Somare government had been removed by a no-confidence motion. It does no more than bring forward what will be happening in four months from now. 
Third, holding an election should put an end to the court cases which are being decided by judges who are not elected and who, as we saw earlier this week, cannot agree what the answer should be.
When the writs are returned and the people have decided who should represent them for the next five years, then, it will be for those elected representatives to decide who should be the prime minister in the usual way. It is due only four months away anyway.
Our problem is elections will cost us. Where will the money come from if the budget is not approved by one or the other side? It is uncertain at this point whether or not the PNG Electoral Commission is anywhere near finalising the common roll.
It will still come down to our proposal. They must talk.