The Speaker of the Samoa Parliament has declared that a “corrupt arrangement”, where a victorious candidate resigned from office as part of an electoral petition deal, does not disqualify that person from re-contesting next month’s by-elections.
Samoa Observer reports Papalii Ta’eu Masipa’u said this means that the Sagaga No. 4 election night winner Tuisa Tasi Patea of the Human Rights Protection Party and his Faatuatua I Le Atua Samoa ua Tasi losing rival Tagaloatele Poloa can both contest the Nov 12 by-election.
Tuisa’s win was questioned by his rival Tagaloatele who lodged a petition against Tuisa citing incidents of treating and bribery and Tuisa also filed a counter petition against Tagaloatele.
However after a meeting between the parties, they agreed to withdraw petitions and Tuisa would resign the seat and go to a by-election.
The court viewed the agreement as a corrupt arrangement between the candidates and was an attempt to circumvent the electoral petition process and the findings were referred to the Speaker to make his final determination.
Speaker Papali’I said the law is technically deficient in relation to the attempt to circumvent the electoral petition process and does not translate to a “corrupt practice”.
“There is no provision which disqualifies a candidate from standing in a by-election where they have been found guilty of attempting to circumvent the process,” he said.
Papali’I said this means that he and the Electoral Commissioner have no powers to stop the candidate guilty of attempting to circumvent the process from running again despite resigning or withdrawing a petition.
“In this case the candidates have not been found guilty of a corrupt practice but have been found to have attempted to circumvent the process which is not a corrupt or illegal practice [as] defined by law.”
