Leader of the Human Rights Protection Party (H.R.P.P.) Tuilaepa Dr. Sailelel Malioelegaoi says he does not know when Parliament will convene but when it does he will only be sworn in by the Head of State.

Tuilaepa made the comments speaking to reporters on Tuesday at the H.R.P.P. Headquarters at Petesa.

The H.R.P.P. leader is adamant that only the Head of State can convene Parliament. His claim is in conflict with the Samoa Law Society which said the Constitution gives the courts the ultimate powers to overrule other parts of the law. 

Monday, 2 August was the date set by Head of State His Royal Highness Tuimaleali’ifano Vaaletoa Sualauvi II for Parliament to sit.

But the date was set by the Head of State before the Court of Appeal issued its ruling that validated the swearing-in of members of the Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (F.A.S.T.) political party and allowed the party to form a new Government. 

“I do not know when Parliament will be called. If Parliament is convened it can only be done by the Head of State,” Tuilaepa said.

“It’s very difficult for us to be sworn in by other people, say by a married couple, because it does not align with the law. Do you see where Samoa is at now?”

The Head of State said Parliament was to convene on 2 August but F.A.S.T. still not convened Parliament, he added.

“F.A.S.T. wanted to get into Parliament but Parliament has not convened,” Tuilaepa said.

Cabinet, he said, is a “Cabinet of children.”

“It’s like a Cabinet of children it’s not like the Cabinet of a Government of educated people. That is why I said yesterday Samoans cannot come and fool other Samoans. Our country is not stupid,” said Tuilaepa.

The Head of State did summon Parliament on the 20th of May and then on the 22nd of May he suspended Parliament, he said.

One reason Parliament was suspended is because Article 44 had not been met, Tuilaepa said.

“When Parliament meets in its first session, it must have…10 percent of women and 10 percent comprises six not five. That is why he decided to suspend it because he became aware that was not achieved. If Parliament was to meet and the 10 percent was not met, Parliament would have failed to comply that is why he decided to suspend,” he said.

“Suddenly” a court sitting was called and at 5 a.m. on a Sunday morning the staff of the Ministry of Justice and Courts Administration began working on the required papers and the court sat on Sunday, he said.

It was “to decide on the suspension and [it was] decided to cancel that suspension.”

“And that is why F.A.S.T. decided to proceed to on the 24th,” Tuilaepa said.

H.R.P.P. continues to raise the question of the court’s independence, he noted.

“That is why we consistently raised the issue of independence whether the court was really independent because suddenly it sat on Sunday but we had a request that was put back to September, an appeal of the issue of the six or five women,” said Tuilaepa.

“Why did the court put back our appeal and decide to sit on early Sunday morning on an issue which came up only a few hours before? Why?”

The Court of Appeal, chaired by the same Chief Justice Satiu Simativa Perese, “decided that six was okay,” he said.

The sixth woman would not be activated until all petition cases have been heard and until all the by-elections have been held following the decisions that may declare some seats vacant,” Tuilaepa said.

“That is what we have been waiting for all this time and suddenly eight days before Parliament was to be convened as called for by the Head of State, in accordance with his powers vested in the Constitution, the Court of Appeal decided on this decision that we are questioning now – terminating the legal custodian Government that was in charge and putting in a Government a prime minister and Ministers that were earlier declared an illegal and unconstitutionally established Cabinet,” he said.