02-15-2015, 12:18 AM
O'Neill's party, People's National Congress, 65 member caucus has just reaffirmed their "confidence" in their PM. That alone is over 60% of the 109 member Parliament.
Opposition leader, Don Poyle, boasts of maybe 20%. It appears that Poyle might not have the confidence to even call for a "no confidence" vote.
"PM is showing his worth" Editorial: The National, Friday 13th of February 2015
PARLIAMENT began its first sitting of 2015 on Tuesday amid moves, or rather murmurings of an impending vote of no confidence in the Government of Prime Minister Peter O’Neill.
Don Polye, sitting in the Opposition leader’s seat in Parliament for the first time since pushing out Belden Namah late last year, saw the end of the 30 months grace period as an opportunity to throw the bait.
The former treasurer claimed at the beginning of the week that he had more than 20 MPs in his camp and was working fervently to entice government backbenchers and other stranglers across the floor of Parliament.
Polye’s unsubstantiated claim somehow put the ruling coalition parties, particularly O’Neill’s People’s National Congress (PNC), on edge and it seemed the numbers game was on again.
“Bring it on” was the response from the PNC caucus, whose 65 MPs met in a Port Moresby hotel on Monday night and reaffirmed their strong support for the Prime Minister.
The ruling party was buoyed by renewed support from coalition partners – People’s Progress Party, National Alliance and United Resources Party.
By the middle of the week, the murmurings had become whispers as Polye shifted his focus to the Opposition’s alternate government road map.
Polye presented a comprehensive document to the House on Wednesday which highlighted eight policies that would give “hope for a change for the better”.
His deputy, Sam Basil was upbeat about the policies, saying they “will do everything that the current government has not done”.
The alternative government plan is a commendable effort by Polye to rebuild an opposition that had been left in ruins by his predecessor.
It would be wise of the Kandep MP to concentrate on his new plan and strive to provide an effective opposition that has been amiss in the people’s house and our democratic system for quite some time.
Polye needs to rebuild his Triumph, Heritage Empowerment (THE) Party which was left in tatters after he was sacked as Treasurer over his refusal to sign the controversial UBS K3 billion loan for the Government to buy shares in Oil Search Limited.
The Government’s show of strength this week should have convinced the Opposition leader that it would be a lopsided numbers game should he attempt a no-confidence motion at this point in time.
By the same token, the Prime Minister has been riding a huge wave of success over the past two years and is unlikely to fall off the surfboard just yet.
In early 2013 when O’Neill pushed for the constitutional amendment to extend the Government’s grace period of office from 18 months to 30 months, he was confident and did succeed in getting overwhelming support for the new law. O’Neill said at the time the extension would give his coalition government the political stability to implement its key policies and impact projects.
Former Opposition leader Belden Namah, on the other hand, lashed out at the amendment as a “total breach” of the Constitution.
There were mixed feelings among Papua New Guineans about O’Neill’s push for the extended grace period.
Some felt the Government deserved to be given ample time to implement its initiatives and reforms, while others were inclined to agree with the Opposition’s view that the extension would compromise good governance.
We agreed with the Prime Minister’s line of thinking that constant shifting of parliamentary loyalties prompted governments to plan for survival instead of implementing policies.
There is little or no doubt that uncertainty breeds instability, something that this country and successive governments have had to endure since independence. In particular, votes of no confidence have been a thorn in the side of successive prime ministers.
We believe the 30 months grace period has provided the political stability needed by the Government to implement its key policy initiatives in education, health, district development and infrastructure.
O’Neill has more than justified his claim to the top job and by all accounts deserves to be given the opportunity to complete his mission and the tasks at hand.
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