Ombudsmen should wake up, find solution to impasse, says Wenge

By ELLEN TIAMU
MOROBE Governor Luther Wenge says the Ombudsman Commission should wake up and find a solution to the political impasse.
He believes the Commission has been silent on the matter when it should be more proactive on such national problems.
He points out that one of its functions is to administer the Leadership Code covering national and provincial leaders to ensure they perform according to the law.
The Commission has the legal standing to raise certain constitutional questions and refer them to the Supreme Court to interpret, he said.
He suggests four pressing questions which should be referred to the Supreme Court to rule on:
l    Whether the election of Peter O’Neill as PM straight after the Supreme Court decision was constitutional;
l    Whether the vacation of the Governor-General (Sir Michael Ogio) because he refused to swear in O’Neill as prime minister constitutional;
l    Whether the swearing in of Peter O’Neill as prime minister  by Jeffrey Nape constitutional;
l    Whether the election of Jeffrey Nape as governor-general by parliament was constitutional; and
l    Whether or not the Act of parliament to remove Sir Michael Somare as regional East Sepik MP and not to attend parliament constitutional.
He suggests that the questions be expeditiously taken up as references to the Supreme Court.
Wenge has also appealed to lawyers advising the two factions to remember that they are professional officers of the court and custodians of the law and must advise the court as to the true position of the law and present true facts.
On the other hand, national MPs must remember that the country belongs to the people who elected them.
He said the country also belongs to the people through the Constitution.