Temu accused of evading petitioner

National, Normal
Source:

Wednesday, 12th September 2012

By ELIAS NANAU
ABAU MP Sir Puka Temu has been accused in court of evading his election petitioner Kei Vuatha Kapa.
Kapa said he and his associates tried serving the petition documents but Sir Puka had evaded them, forcing the 14-day period to lapse yesterday.
“We have been trying to find the respondent (Temu) to serve documents,” Kapa told judge administrator Colin Makail in Port Moresby yesterday.
Kapa produced in court an affidavit that one of his associates served documents at Sir Puka’s home yesterday, but Makail held that unless information from the Electoral Commission confirmed the residence, the court would not conclude that the documents had been served.
“There is no evidence to show that it was Temu’s residence,” Makail said.
Kapa applied in court that a substitute service be granted and he opted to publish documents in the newspapers.
But Makail only approved another 14 days for Kapa to verify whether service effected by one of his associates was at Sir Puka’s home.
Kapa is challenging the re-election of Sir Puka for the Abau open seat in Central.
Former acting judge and losing candidate for the Kagua-Erave electorate, in Southern Highlands, Nemo Yalo yesterday applied in court for a substitute service by way of newspaper advertisements.
Yalo is challenging the re-election of James Lagea.
“I understand that the first respondent (Lagea) lives at Kanage Street, 5-Mile,” Yalo said.
“The place is locked up … there’s no one there.”
Yalo asked the court to grant him leave to publish a brief in the newspapers that Lagea and the returning officer could pick up the documents at the national court registry.
But Makail maintained: “It’s your responsibility.”
Yalo told the court that two weeks had
lapsed.