Premier Suidani’s trip to Taiwan could bring his own downfall
THE controversial travel to Taiwan by Premier Daniel Suidani is reportedly turning into a nightmare and could abruptly end the man’s tenure as Malaita Premier prematurely, inside sources told Solomon Star last night.
Its understood the Malaita Executive is considering an emergency sitting, angry that Premier Suidani never informed them about his travel plans, the sources said.
Premier Suidani initially traveled to Australia seeking medical attention. After running up an AUD121, 000 medical bill at the Mater Public Hospital, Mr. Suidani travelled on to Taipei where he is now.
Published comments attributed to him in the past week suggested that Taiwan had offered to pick up his medical bill. It is not clear whether the offer by the Taipei Government to settle his bill included the bill at the Mater Public Hospital in Brisbane.
What angers his Executive and the Provincial Assembly is the fact that he kept them in the dark about his travel. The Premier informed neither about his travel plans.
“Premier Suidani even kept his Deputy in the dark about his travel, initially to Australia and then on to Taiwan. The Executive is angry. The idea now is to remove him from the leadership and be replaced by someone in the MARA government,” the sources said.
“That position is now under active consideration,” the sources said.
According to the sources, Government Caucus met in Honiara yesterday to consider a number of potential options, including the suspension of the Malaita Provincial Government.
However, this option was not taken onboard for fear it could ignite an already tense situation.
Instead, the national government is in close contact with the Malaita Executive to identify a mutually acceptable arrangement in settling the matter, the sources said.
They said this includes the Malaita Executive deciding a date for an urgent session of the Malaita Provincial Assembly solely for formalising a change in leadership in the MARA government.
The sources said if the Provincial Executive does not call an urgent session of the Assembly, the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly will use his powers to call one.
Such a meeting is expected early next week, the sources said.
“Again, the agenda will be the same – to change the leadership of the MARA Government from within,” they said.
Under pressure from Beijing to stick to the One China Principle, the National Government this week declared Premier Suidani’s trip to Taiwan was “unauthorised.”
By Alfred Sasako
Newsroom, Honiara
