Is the nomination fee of K10,000 excessive?
The Supreme Court will determine if the K10,000 nomination fee proposed by the PNG parliament is lawful according to the Constitution. Is the increased fee excessive? Does it restrict citizens constitutional right to stand for public office? Does the fee only allow the elites to stand for public office and thus disadvantage those that do not have adequate funds? This are some of the issues the court will look at in April. The Ombudsman Commission who filed the case wants the matter determined before the writs are issued by the Electoral Commissioner on April 20.
Speaker joins as second intervener to election fees case
By CHARLES MOI ( http://www.thenational.com.pg/speaker-joins-second-intervener-election-fees-case/)
SPEAKER of Parliament Theo Zurenouc has been included as a party in a court case relating to Parliament’s two proposed laws to increase fees for election nomination and petition.
In a reference filed by the Ombudsman Commission (OC), it seeks court clarification on the legality of proposed bills on the K10,000 nomination fee and the cost of lodging an election petition of K20,000 (from K5000).
The Supreme Court, presided over by Justice Stephen Kassman in Waigani yesterday, allowed Zurenouc to join the case as the second intervener.
Lawyer Dr Vergil Narokobi, acting for the OC and lawyer Tiffany Twivey, representing Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, agreed to have Zurenouc join as a party to the case.
Lawyer Ray Williams appeared for the Electoral Commission. Williams said he would file an application later in the week to join his client in the case.
Narokobi and Twivey said they would not oppose the application by the Electoral Commission to join the case.
But Narokobi said the matter needed to be determined by the court quickly before the writs were issued on April 20.
An application by the Constitutional Law Reform Commission (CLRC) will be heard by the court on April 3.
The court also granted an application moved by Narokobi to amend his client’s reference and include more questions for the Supreme Court to interpret.
Narokobi said the questions related to Parliament’s proposed amendment to section 208 (e) of the Organic Law on National and Local Level Government Elections.
This amendment will limit the number of court registries in which an election petition is filed to four regional National Courts. This is in Waigani, Lae, Kokopo and Mt Hagen.
In the substantive matter, the Ombudsman Commission is seeking an opinion of the court on the constitutional validity of the two proposed laws in the form of bills to amend section 103 (2) of the Constitution and section 87 and section 209 of the Organic Law on National and Local Level Government Elections.
The bills have gone past two of three readings required to pass the Constitutional amendments and are awaiting the third and final reading which is to take place in the last sitting of this term of Parliament scheduled for this month.
Article in The National dated March 22, 2017.
In a reference filed by the Ombudsman Commission (OC), it seeks court clarification on the legality of proposed bills on the K10,000 nomination fee and the cost of lodging an election petition of K20,000 (from K5000).
The Supreme Court, presided over by Justice Stephen Kassman in Waigani yesterday, allowed Zurenouc to join the case as the second intervener.
Lawyer Dr Vergil Narokobi, acting for the OC and lawyer Tiffany Twivey, representing Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, agreed to have Zurenouc join as a party to the case.
Lawyer Ray Williams appeared for the Electoral Commission. Williams said he would file an application later in the week to join his client in the case.
Narokobi and Twivey said they would not oppose the application by the Electoral Commission to join the case.
But Narokobi said the matter needed to be determined by the court quickly before the writs were issued on April 20.
An application by the Constitutional Law Reform Commission (CLRC) will be heard by the court on April 3.
The court also granted an application moved by Narokobi to amend his client’s reference and include more questions for the Supreme Court to interpret.
Narokobi said the questions related to Parliament’s proposed amendment to section 208 (e) of the Organic Law on National and Local Level Government Elections.
This amendment will limit the number of court registries in which an election petition is filed to four regional National Courts. This is in Waigani, Lae, Kokopo and Mt Hagen.
In the substantive matter, the Ombudsman Commission is seeking an opinion of the court on the constitutional validity of the two proposed laws in the form of bills to amend section 103 (2) of the Constitution and section 87 and section 209 of the Organic Law on National and Local Level Government Elections.
The bills have gone past two of three readings required to pass the Constitutional amendments and are awaiting the third and final reading which is to take place in the last sitting of this term of Parliament scheduled for this month.
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