Sopoanga Moves To Ban Floor Crossing

Saufatu Sopoanga...wants to avoid constant changes of government.

smarting from a prolonged but unsuccessful attempt to topple him as prime minister of one of the region's tiniest democracies, Saufatu Sopoanga is not one to rest on his laurels. He has one and only one priority: amend Tuvalu's constitution to make it unlawful for newer members of parliament to switch alliances. MPs who cross the floor do so at the cost of their seats, a legislative inspiration the Tuvalu leader is borrowing from the constitution of its southern and much bigger neighbour, Fiji.

Lawyers at the Attorney General's chambers in Funafuti are already burning the midnight lamp to come up with a draft constitutional amendment bill that Sopoanga plans to introduce in next year's first sitting of parliament. This will be either in March or April.

"The proposed amendment will prohibit members from crossing the floor after a by-election for the sake of running a stable government," Prime Minister Sopoanga explains in a telephone interview with Islands Business last month.

"We should not allow radical people to have their own way. They should learn to respect and honour the party affiliation of the member they replace at least for the duration of the term of parliament." For four months Sopoanga led a minority government as he lost his one-seat majority in the 15-seat parliament following the death of two MPs, and the refusal by one of the succeeding MPs, Tavau Teii of Niutao Island, to join his group. Because of this, the opposition grouping led by Amasone Kilei succeeded in getting one of their own, Sopoanga's fellow Nukufetau MP, Faimalaga Luka, elected as parliamentary Speaker.

Without the numbers and to ward off an imminent no confidence motion, the prime minister deferred parliamentary sitting to last month. Kilei and his group cried foul and challenged the decision in the High Court. But Chief Justice Gordon Ward threw out the petition, saying Sopoanga hasn't breached the constitution by running a minority government although the onus is for the Governor-General to act, if he wants to solve the impasse.

The court direction came a bit too late though as the incumbent's term, Doctor Tomasi Puapua, expired in September. This, according to Sopoanga was the respite he had been praying for.

"It was tricky but we did it," said the prime minister. "I was confident all the way that we were going to regain our numbers because the opposition was just interested in making up stories about us. They were not focused on the relevant issues. In deferring parliament, our interest was in avoiding the constant change of government which is not good for a small country like Tuvalu. I knew the term of the Governor-General was going to end in September and I was just waiting."

The former secretary to government did not deny that in getting the Speaker to become the new Governor-General, necessitating another by-election, was one of the biggest political coups of his life. According to Sopoanga, it was his island council, not him, that pressured Luka into making the move. The elders (in Nukufetau) had written a letter to the Speaker to vacate his seat because they were not happy about his decision not to support me in parliament.

They understood why I was wanting to hold onto power, for the sake of a stable and secure government.

"But I knew it would be very difficult for Luka to step out of parliament into nothing, he'll need somewhere to go."

And Luka did go, at least with the blessing of Prime Minister Sopoanga, to become the next head of state of Tuvalu. For now, the Nukufetau leader believes his support is rock solid. Already, his government survived a no-confidence motion in last month's parliamentary sitting. With his former Home Affairs minister now Speaker, Sopoanga easily defeated the vote 9-6 and got his 2004 budget passed too.

According to him, the only large project in next year's capital programme is the US$7 million Government Buildings complex in Funafuti, built under Taiwanese aid.

With some 60 percent of the work completed, the complex is scheduled to be opened in February. Other capital works include a new powerhouse for the capital and the extension and upgrading of Funafuti's main deep-sea wharf. While the search is still on for overseas financiers to foot part of the bill, government is projecting a budget deficit of AUS$1.5 million.