Gracia Shadrack served as the Speaker of the Parliament of Vanuatu from 20 April 2020[1] to 15 June 2021.[2] He represents Malakula as a member of the Leaders Party of Vanuatu.[1]
Following a government motion to have the speaker removed, and the boycott of parliament by government MPs, Shadrack declared on 8 June 2021 that the seats of the prime minister Bob Loughman, the deputy prime minister, and 16 other MPs were vacant.[3] Supreme Court Justice Oliver Saksak put a stay on the speaker's ruling until a court could formally consider the dispute.[4] Shadrack resigned as speaker on 15 June 2021.[2] The group of MPs won at the Court of Appeal on 28 October.[5]
On 9 November 2021, the government majority passed a motion to suspend Shadrack for two years for declaring the seats vacant, citing his action as biased and a waste of public funds. Shadrack said that he would challenge the motion in court.[5]
References
edit- ^ a b Kalsakau, Godwin Ligo,Terence Malapa, & Kizzy. "MP Shadrack is new Speaker of Parliament". Vanuatu Daily Post. Retrieved 2021-03-18.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b "Amid dispute with government, Vanuatu speaker resigns". Radio New Zealand. 15 June 2021.
- ^ "Legal challenge looms after Vanuatu speaker declares most govt seats vacant". Radio New Zealand. 8 June 2021.
- ^ "Judge stays Vanuatu Speaker's move". Radio New Zealand. 9 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Revenge for Vanuatu govt as MP suspended". RNZ. 2021-11-09. Retrieved 2021-12-09.
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