The lawyer for the Electoral Commission Bhupendra Patel today told the High Court that the commission correctly awarded the parliament seat to SODELPA’s Mikaele Leawere after the passing away of SODELPA MP Ratu Viliame Tagivetaua.
While arguing the case on behalf of the commission, Patel mentioned that the award was made under the Electoral Decree.
He says the seat was awarded on the 27th of April and the commission carried out its duty under the law to award the seat to Leawere.
Patel also highlighted that Opposition Leader Ro Teimumu Kepa had written a letter to the commission in March this year which also included attached letters from July 17th, 2014 showing that Mikaele Leawere wrote to the Fijian Teachers Association stating that he is to file his nomination for elections and tendered his resignation from FTA.
Patel says the resignation was also accepted by FTA on 18th July, 2014.
He told presiding judge Justice David Alfred that there is no law that prohibits Leawere from holding the parliamentary seat.
Patel says the Electoral Commission had to pick the name of the highest ranked candidate from the same party who did not get elected in the elections.
He says there is no dispute that Leawere was the highest ranked candidate.
Patel says the commission can only refuse to award the seat to a candidate if he or she is not available at the date of the vacancy.
The Attorney General’s petition seeks a determination that the Electoral Commission erred in law in awarding a vacant parliamentary seat to Leawere, who was the SODELPA candidate with the highest number of votes in the September 2014 General Election after SODELPA MP Ratu Viliame Tagivetaua’s death on March 5th this year.
Lawyer for the AG’s Office Devinesh Sharma says when the vacancy arose, Leawere was the Acting General Secretary of the Fijian Teachers Association making him a public officer.
According to the constitution, no public officer is eligible to take up a parliamentary seat.
Under section 64 of the constitution, when a seat of a member from a political party becomes vacant, the Commission must award the seat to the candidate of the same party who in the past general election is the highest ranked of the candidates who did not get elected to Parliament and who is available to serve.
Submissions will continue to be heard by the High Court today on whether Leawere should continue to occupy the parliamentary seat.
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