SOLOMON IS: Sogavare ousted as Prime Minister
Updated
In Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has been ousted from office. Mr Sogavare lost a vote of no-confidence 25 votes to 22 - in what's believed to be the first time a prime minister has been thrown out through a vote of no-confidence. The motion was moved by the Member for Parliament for North East Guadalcanal, Derek Sikua. Meanwhile, parliament has adjourned until the Governor General proclaims a new date when it will sit to elect a new prime minister.
Presenter: Geraldine Coutts
Speakers: Evan Wasuka, Honiara correspondent
COUTTS: Evan hi.
WASUKA: Hi Geraldine.
COUTTS: Can you just confirm those numbers for us, 25 to 22?
WASUKA: Yes 25 to the opposition and 22 for the Prime Minister.
COUTTS: Now has there been any response from Mr Sogavare in losing his prime minister's job?
WASUKA: Yes he said he'd greet it with humility and because parliament had voted him into office and now they're taking him down, he said he was satisfied with the outcome of today's vote.
COUTTS: Now the voting in the house seemed to be stable, 25-22, but were there any last minute changes of mind from the opposition to government and government to opposition?
WASUKA: It came down to the vote now it's still the same, opposition 25 pulled in while the government's 22 voted the PM's way.
COUTTS: So what kind of response has this been met with by the house, firstly by the members in the house, what happened immediately after the vote was declared?
WASUKA: Well after the PM spoke and he accepted the outcome of the vote, afterwards there was a lot of handshakes all around, a lot of hugging between both sides of the house, and he said he accepted the outcome so now it's just for the Governor General to announce the date next.
COUTTS: And will there be much time lapse before the Governor General does actually make the announcement?
WASUKA: We expect in the next couple of days because it's almost the end of the year and parliament still has to pass the resolution before December 31st.
COUTTS: And Evan before we let you go this evening and thank you very much for your time, is it too soon to gauge any public response to the vote against Mr Sogavare?
WASUKA: At this stage I think it's too early to say what the public feeling is like.
COUTTS: So there's no one gathering around Parliament House waiting for the result?
WASUKA: No, no, it's practically empty, parliament is empty, the town of Honiara is basically empty, it's almost 6 in the evening so people are making their way home.
COUTTS: So Evan just before we let you go, any guesses as to who might get the job of prime minister next in Solomon Islands?
WASUKA: It's hard to tell right now. The opposition say they've already selected someone, they've been saying that for the past couple of weeks. At this stage it's not clear who's their candidate for prime minister's post.
COUTTS: Evan Wasuka, our reporter in Honiara, thank you very much indeed.
WASUKA: Thank you.
