Numu’s call starts shouting match

EASTERN Highlands Governor Peter Numu was shouted down in Parliament yesterday by Opposition MPs when he directed a request to the Deputy Speaker for the Speaker not to entertain questions relating to the Apec Leaders’ Summit.
After seeking leave of Parliament, Numu asked the Speaker not to entertain any Apec-related questions from MPs in the interim period leading up to the summit.
He said Apec was an important event for the country and the people in the long term and urged the Speaker to use his discretion to prevent MPs from raising questions about Apec.
“The issues relating to Apec can be raised after the Apec meeting because we are destroying our country at the international level,” Numu said.
Numu’s request resulted in a huge uproar with shouting from the Opposition bench that told him to stand down as he did not know what he was talking about.
After a few seconds of a shouting match between Numu and the Opposition bench, Deputy Speaker Jeffrey Komal brought the floor to order and told Numu that his question was out of order.
Komal said every MP had the right under the constitution to ask his or her question and the Speaker could stop anyone from asking questions.