VIJAY SINGH UNDER SIEGE
AS OPPONENTS MOUNT PRESSURE WITH PETITIONS But it is understood he is handling it well.
First there was a petition to have Vijay Singh removed as the only recognised vice president of suspended SODELPA.
Now there is another petition calling on Mr Singh to convene the Management Board meeting by June 15.
It also calls for the return to Parliament of suspended SODELPA MPs in time for the Budget debate.
It fails to say how this will happen except that an acting president and two acting vice presidents need to be elected to get the party moving and avoid de-registration.
The petition, which originated in Naitasiri, also calls for the Management Board to skip or bypass the Working Committee, the engine room of the Management Board, to expedite matters and accelerate the process to lift the suspension.
It was at the Working Committee level that the rift between the two factions exploded into the open.
Adi Litia Qionibaravi resisted a committee resolution to suspend her as general secretary, pending investigations into complaints against her on governance issues.
It was part of a sequel to a landmark High Court judgment that ruled that the annual general meeting in Savusavu last year was invalid.
The two factions then held their own separate meetings and elected their own officials.
But they failed to meet the requirements of their constitution and the party was suspended for 60 days during which the breaches should be rectified to avoid de-registration. Mr Singh is still in Australia.
But those close to him say the lawyer is following the requirements of the law after consulting with the office of the Registrar of Political Parties. They say he is unruffled by the pressures because they were outside the realms of the law and the party constitution.
As this is going on there is an application in court for a stay of the implementation of the High Court ruling that officials removed because of the ruling be called back to act until the next annual general meeting where substantive appointments will be made.
Constituency meetings are now dominating suspended SODELPA activities as part of the process to remedy constitutional breaches.
Rewa is understood to be the first province to elect its delegate to the Management Board and it has chosen
Ro Teimumu Kepa. She is on Vijay Singh’s side.
Rewa is understood to be the first province to elect its delegate to the Management Board and it has chosen Ro Teimumu Kepa. She is on Vijay Singh’s side.