The Prime Minister (PM) Ishmael Kalsakau said having a no-confidence motion at this time when the government should focus on implementing its development plans is irresponsible and a waste of resources.
He said the reasons for the motion are baseless and are against the development aspirations of the people.
PM Kalsakau was speaking during a press conference after boycotting the no-confidence session on Thursday morning.
He said the Opposition bloc brought the motion against him, therefore it should demonstrate that it has sufficient support by appearing in Parliament.
“The Opposition called for the session and was claiming to have sufficient support to oust the PM, it should have demonstrated that in Parliament.
“We (the government side) have decided that because we have not called for the session, onus is on the Opposition to show they are ready to remove the PM. This was abundantly absent in Parliament.
“Its a big waste of resources at a time when we are trying to rebuild our nation but MPs are trying to hinder the government’s mobility to do so,” he said.
He said political instability disrupts economic growth.
Minister of Climate Change and former Oppositon Leader, Ralph Regenvanu, said its a shame to call for a session without having the required simple majority.
A former PM and President of the Reunification Movement for Change (RMC), Charlot Salwai, urged MPs and political parties not to create man disasters.
“Vanuatu has experienced consequences of no-confidence motion over the past years and its time for the MPs to come together and find a solution.
“We need to unite and talkabout a way to come out of this political crisis. The country and people are suffering because of our attitudes,” he said.
President of the Leaders Party and former Deputy PM, Jotham Napat, said the MPs should have some sense of responsiblity and avoid creating an instability.
According to the PM, the government currently commands 26 MPs.
He said they are confident to defeat the motion and continue delivering services to the public.
Source: Vanuatu Daily Post (VDP)
