By MAL TAIME
LONG-SERVING councillor and only Knight in Jiwaka Province Sir Tumun Dupre prefers the old LLG president election system where councillors elect presidents.
Sir Tumun said this at a gathering held in Minj last week after the councillors who have been elected in the failed South Wahgi LLG election raised concerns that they were still waiting to be sworn-in.
Sir Tumun said the new system where the people were allowed to elect presidents did not work out and it must be abolished.
He said people in the communities mandated the councillors to represent them in the chambers so the councillors must be allowed to exercise their powers to elect president.
Sir Tumun was elected councillor in 1961 and in the recent LLG election he was declared unopposed for Anginmol ward near Minj town.
He said the Electoral Commission had failed South Wahgi along with other LLG elections in the six Highlands provinces and that denied them of their representation in the provincial executive council.
Sir Tumun said the commission must allow the elected councillors to elect president so that the president would represent the people in the provincial executive council until the Electoral Commission set a date to conduct supplementary election when a new president would be elected.
At the gathering most councillors were in doubt about whether they would be recognised as councillors or not.
They said they were still waiting to be sworn in as duly elected councillors.
But Jiwaka provincial election steering committee chairman Joseph Nop Amban said it would be illegal to have them sworn-in.
Mr Amban said the Electoral Commission declared South Wahgi LLG as failed and it was illegal for the committee to organise the swearing-in ceremony.
LONG-SERVING councillor and only Knight in Jiwaka Province Sir Tumun Dupre prefers the old LLG president election system where councillors elect presidents.
Sir Tumun said this at a gathering held in Minj last week after the councillors who have been elected in the failed South Wahgi LLG election raised concerns that they were still waiting to be sworn-in.
Sir Tumun said the new system where the people were allowed to elect presidents did not work out and it must be abolished.
He said people in the communities mandated the councillors to represent them in the chambers so the councillors must be allowed to exercise their powers to elect president.
Sir Tumun was elected councillor in 1961 and in the recent LLG election he was declared unopposed for Anginmol ward near Minj town.
He said the Electoral Commission had failed South Wahgi along with other LLG elections in the six Highlands provinces and that denied them of their representation in the provincial executive council.
Sir Tumun said the commission must allow the elected councillors to elect president so that the president would represent the people in the provincial executive council until the Electoral Commission set a date to conduct supplementary election when a new president would be elected.
At the gathering most councillors were in doubt about whether they would be recognised as councillors or not.
They said they were still waiting to be sworn in as duly elected councillors.
But Jiwaka provincial election steering committee chairman Joseph Nop Amban said it would be illegal to have them sworn-in.
Mr Amban said the Electoral Commission declared South Wahgi LLG as failed and it was illegal for the committee to organise the swearing-in ceremony.
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