By Cashmir Waken and Elias Nanau
The Waigani National Court has on Friday March 17, dismissed the election petition, challenging the win of Belden Namah as Member elect for Vanimo Green River open in the 2022 National elections.
This is the first election petition filed against Namah since his entry into politics and winning the seat in 2007, 2012 and 2017 national general elections.
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| Hon Belden Namah -Source: Facebook |
The election petition was dismissed after the petitioner Erick Kowa who was the runner up in the 2022 election and his counsel failed to appear in court during the status conference on the 3rd of March 2023.
The election petition was dismissed following a successful application filed by Namah's counsel from Young and Williams law firm.
Mr Namah has welcome the decision with his supporters outside the court house on Friday afternoon.
His counsel made a submission earlier this week to have the petition dismissed on grounds that the Petitioner Erick Kowa and his counsel did not attend the status conference on March 3rd.
The status conference is the final phase under the election petition rules before a full trial.
Despite the petitioner's submissions to explain his absence during the status conference, the court was not satisfied with their reasons.
Judge Joseph Yagi who is the judge administrator for election petitions says the petitioner has failed to provide an explanation and evidence for his reason to miss the status conference.
He says the status conference is a mandatory proceeding which must be attended by all lawyers especially the petitioner's Counsel.
Yagi says though there were serious allegations of bribery in the petition which resonate with dishonesty and corruption, the petitioner and his counsel were not serious as they failed to comply with court orders and attend status conference of the election petition.
Justice Yagi has dismissed the election petition under rule 18 for summary determination.
Hon Belden Namah entered National Parliament after the 2007 National Elections as a National Alliance MP.
He was appointed the Minister for Forests but within that same term was critical about the Somare led government and broke ranks, joining the Opposition which comprised Sir Mekere Morauta, Sam Basil, Jame Maxtone-Graham and few others.
He later became the PNG Party leader and had a strong aspiration to be the first Prime Minister from Sandaun.
Mr Namah was in jail before 2007 for mutiny because of his involvement in dismantling Sandline who were engaged by the Sir Julius Chan government to flush out rebels in Bougainville.
When he was pardoned from jail he got heavily involved with landowners from the inland Vanimo Green River district to stop Vanimo Forest Products to be given a logging permit to extract timber from the Amanab FMA blocks 1-4 and Amanab 5-6.
Adjacent to the Vanimo district court house, Namah and the landowners would hold banners calling for the Provincial Forest Management Committee to award forest logging licence to MOMA GVG Resources.
There were other landowner groups who were bidding to develop their forest resource as well but were not active publicly like Namah and his group.
Mr Namah had already become well known in Vaniimo Green for his fearless actions against Sandline and chartering F28 Air Niugini jets to Vanimo.
He sponsored the Momase Regional Volleyball tournament in Vanimo making him more popular and won the 2007 elections unseating AOG Pastor from Imonda Philip Inou.
Mr Namah, from Somboi village in Bewani has set history as the only Vanimo Green River electorate MP who has held the seat for four consecutive terms.
After the 2012 National General elections he was leader of the opposition and at one stage, he was one man standing.
He was not moved. He said one man plus God is many.
Mr Namah orchestrated the controversial overthrow of Somare on August 2, 2011 and installing Peter O'Neill as Prime Minister.
This was after a strategic and bonding trip Sir Mekere, Sam Basil, Dr Allan Marat, Jamie Maxtone Graham, Koni Iguan and others took to Vanimo with Namah.
During the launch of Vanimo Green district road works machinery at Dasi he told his people there would be a new government and less than a week later Peter O'Neill was installed as Prime Minister.
He has become popular for few wrong reasons too but he always maintains his actions were for the good of people.
He started Sandaun Border Rangers which was categorised as an illegal force.
He stormed the National Court while a court was in session and a disciplined force member assaulted the associate to former CJ Sir Salamo Injia.
Mr Namah was an outspoken and a non -nonsense MP, who spoke against and made calls on many national issues, this drew popularity and admiration from people as well.
In his close to 20 years of politics, he has said after winning the 2022 national election he wants to concentrate more on development for his Vanimo Green River district.
The dismissal of his election petition should now be a huge relief for him.
