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Cook Islands likely deadlocked following opposition's attempt to overthrow PM

Xinhua, June 22, 2016 Adjust font size:

Cook Islands is risking to slide into a political deadlock following an opposition move on Monday to pass a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister Henry Puna and his cabinet while he was on an overseas trip.

The opposition coalition resumed Parliament with 13 MPs on board, over half of the 24 member legislature forming a quorum, passing the motion against Puna and his Cook Islands Party (CIP) with apparent support of CIP MPs.

Puna left early last week for a visit to Singapore attending the Airshow and Aviation Leadership Summit 2016 and later the 2nd Pacific Islands States Transport Minister's Visit Program.

During the session in the parliament, Opposition leader Teina Bishop, former Education and Tourism Minister in the CIP government, relieved Clerk of Parliament John Tangi, who opposed the session, of his duties and requested deputy speaker CIP MP Rose Brown to chair the session in the absence of speaker Niki Rattle.

The opposition put forward a number of motions with Democratic Party leader William Heather moving a motion of no confidence in cabinet which later passed.

The opposition went to meet the Queen's Representative Tom Marsters to inform his of the results. The meeting, however, did not happen as Marsters was not at his residence at the time.

Cook Islands Finance Minister Mark Brown warned the opposition of their actions as "bordering on treason" while opposition leader Bishop defended the move as legitimate and in accordance with the Constitution.

CIP narrowly retained a majority in parliament by one seat when the self-governing islands in free association with New Zealand went to snap elections in 2014. Enditem