| Executive action: Contested election |
As many of you are aware – there are outstanding issues with regards to the recent Minister of Foreign Affairs election – several of which are still yet to be resolved by the courts. There are also a number of areas of the law in which it remains unclear how the region should respond to this contested mandate.
In the efforts of (a) maintaining a working justice system and (b) not having a cloud over the Foreign Affairs department, the Cabinet is exercising its power under Article 6.1.6 of the Charter, to create an executive action taking the following steps: 1. No one shall be seated as a Minister of Foreign Affairs until the High Court is able to rule on several legal issues surrounding the election, including any such appeals. 2. If the High Court is unable to decide the legality of such actions, we shall hold a special election to decide the new Minister of Foreign Affairs. 3. Until such time as the Minister of Foreign Affairs seat is filled with a new Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Vice Delegate (Penguin), the outgoing Minister of Foreign Affairs (Feirmont) and the outgoing Minister of Regional Affairs (Kringalia)shall work as a team to meet the duties of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. It is strongly felt that due to the current issues — no candidate will be able to be effective in this role until these court cases are decided. It is hoped that by undertaking such action, we will be able to restore faith in our judicial process, faith in our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and — most importantly — faith in the electoral process. Thank you for your patience, understanding and cooperation on this difficult matter.
-tsunamy
[forum admin]
Great idea Tsu.
The temp MoFA trio was a surprise, but you couldn't find a better team. Go Holiday Pencake 
This is a great decision.
The issues aren't about the contestants themselves but about having a fair and just election where no one feels disenfranchised and where we don't send dangerous messages about power and control in TSP. And I love having faith in people taking the time to think things through clearly and making the best choices for the region and its future. Faith is life. Thank you. Escade ~ Positions Held in TSP ~ Delegate | Vice Delegate Minister of Regional Affairs, | Minister of Foreign Affairs | Minister of Military Affairs ~ The Sparkly One ~ My Pinterest
I'm not sure how this is legal, but that probably doesn't matter given how screwed up everything is already.
(03-30-2015, 12:29 AM)Sopo Wrote: I'm not sure how this is legal, but that probably doesn't matter given how screwed up everything is already. Article 6.1.6 states: The Cabinet may adopt Executive Policy in cases where no law exists; Executive Policy may not conflict with the Charter, Bill of Rights, or Code of Law.
Can the Cabinet provide the actual law(s) they followed when making this ruling, and why the government of The South Pacific should consider its validity over an attempt to subvert the current boundaries in the Charter?
EDIT: if the Cabinet is officially using an executive action, perhaps the Cabinet may attempt to explain how this ruling clearly does not contradict protocol followed in the Election Act or other clauses of the Charter. Until such conditions are met, I advise that the region should follow what is outlined in the law rather than some hodgepodge "executive action".
This isn't legal.
Edit: The Election Law is now its own act but it was done that way with a link to it in the Code of Lass. This action is therefore in contradiction with the Code of Laws. It is also in Contradiction with the recent Court opinion that says more than 1 person cannot hold a single office.
(03-29-2015, 11:48 PM)Tsunamy Wrote: It is strongly felt that due to the current issues — no candidate will be able to be effective in this role until these court cases are decided. It is hoped that by undertaking such action, we will be able to restore faith in our judicial process, faith in our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and — most importantly — faith in the electoral process. Emphasis mine. Furthermore, this isn't the call of any group or any one person in The South Pacific, except for the citizens of the region. The cabinet does not have the power to invalidate any election it wants on the basis of "feels", nor should the region accept this as kosher. It's bad news when one person in the upper echelons of the government doesn't follow protocol outlined in the charter, it's even worse when it's the entire cabinet. On the basis of feelings, mind you. Please tell me this is a joke, or a post to 'test the waters' with the intergrity of the citizens here.
(03-30-2015, 12:44 AM)TAC Wrote: In cases where no law exists Ah, you got me. There's no law about elections anywhere. But wait - turns out, there is a law for elections, and it clearly defines the election process. And it says this: Quote:4. The winning candidates during a Cabinet Election race shall be the candidate, when paired up against any other candidate, who would surpass any other candidate in terms of support; if no such candidate exists, the winning candidate shall be determined by an instant-runoff vote. Oh, and this: Quote:6. In all elections an option to re-open nominations will be included. For non-judicial elections, if this option receives the most votes the nomination period for that office will be restarted. Emphasis also mine. And finally this: Quote:9. For Court Justice and Local Council elections, if the option to Re-Open Nominations receives enough votes to be placed within the winning selection, then the nomination period will be restarted for all seats with lesser votes than this option. The candidates who receive the top votes will win however many seats are left to be filled. I... fail to see where policy on elections does not exist. This is, as the original post stated, a means of invalidating an election on the basis of feelings, nothing more. There is no legal precedent for this. |
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