Candidate hopes to break Samoa election deadlock - a podcast by RNZ

from 2021-06-04T07:53

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The woman at the centre of one of the battles over who can form a government in Samoa says the experience has been bizarre.
After April's election, a deadlock was created after the electoral commission announced an extra seat for women, pointing to a provision in the constitution that reserves 10 percent of parliament's seats.
That seat was handed to Aliimalemanu Alofa Tuuau, a member of the caretaker Human Rights Protection Party.
But an appeal by the FAST party challenged that, arguing the constitution sets the minimum at five seats, which were already filled.
The Supreme Court agreed, and Aliimalemanu lost her seat.
But this week, the Court of Appeal ruled there should be six seats, but that the electoral commission acted too soon - so now she has to wait until after electoral petitions and appeals.
RNZ Pacific's Jamie Tahana asked Aliimalemau what she made of the ruling.

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