New law renders all court orders useless

PARLIAMENT yesterday passed the Supreme Court (Amendment) Bill which gives the House oversight role over the judiciary, effectively rendering court orders since Dec 9 last year as null and void.
The bill, which was introduced only 24 hours earlier, was passed on voices.
Affected are the Supreme Court orders of Dec 12 (SCR 3) which reinstated Sir Michael Somare to the post of prime minister.
It also rendered useless all the contempt of court actions against leaders including Deputy Prime Minister Belden Namah and Attorney-General Dr Allan Marat, a statement from Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s office said last night.
Namah, who introduced the bill, told parliament that the oversight role of the judiciary was provided in section 157 of the Constitution.
He said the passage of the bill had nullified Supreme Court references one and two, dating back to Dec 9 last year.
The sections proposed in the bill will also negate the consequential orders granted by the court in SCR 3 on Dec 12 last year.
The amendments meant the courts “shall not have the power to make any consequential orders, interim injunctive reliefs and others”.
Effectively, all orders and reliefs issued by the courts in Supreme Court references 3/2011 and 5/2012 “are of no force and effect and are null and void”.
Namah said the current constitutional crisis was not the work of parliament or the government.
“It was created by someone who thinks he owns the position he holds.
“The position of chief justice belongs to the people of this nation. It does not belong to one man.
“It is not his personal property.
“Parliament will not give up its oversight role.”
The oversight rule had also nullified last Wednesday’s stay orders against the implementation of the Judicial Court Act by a three-judge Supreme Court.
The Morobe provincial executive had applied to the Supreme Court for its interpretation of the legality of the Judicial Conduct Act.