No funds, no by-election

 THE Samarai-Murua Open seat by-election in Milne Bay can be conducted if the Government provides the funding, Electoral Commissioner Patilias Gamato says.

He was responding to Milne Bay Governor Titus Philemon and former Samarai-Murua MP Gordon Wesley who had questioned by it was being cancelled.

Gamato said the cancellation was due to the short time given to the winner to be in Parliament before the 2017 national election and lack of funding from Government.

 “The approval and release of an estimated K4.5 million will allow the PNGEC to conduct a by-election. I reiterate that the commission has a mandatory duty to conduct a by-election for Samarai-Murua under section 106 of the Constitution. But funding is an issue,” he said.

“I have written to the Prime Minister requesting for an estimated K4.5 million to conduct a by-election for Samarai-Murua and we are awaiting a response.”

Gamato said if the funding was forthcoming, the commission was “duty-bound to conduct a by-election” as required by law.