P.E.C INDEPENDENCE COULD REQUIRE AMENDMENT TO CONSTITUTION
Honourable Matthew Cooper Wale. Photo credit: Solomon Islands Parliament.
A possible outcome of deliberations on the independence of the Parliamentary Entitlements Commission (PEC) would be an amendment of the constitution to ensure that the PEC is totally independent.
Chairperson of the Constitution Review Committee, Matthew Wale made the comments in an interview with SIBC News recently.
He says a possible outcome at the end of the process could be a recommendation for a constitutional amendment to ensure a total independence of the PEC.
“At the end of the process a possible outcome could be that the committee recommends a proposed constitutional amendment which will enhance or strengthen or ensure the commission truly independent as well as look at its process, perhaps there ought to be greater transparency in the submissions it received and how it deals withdecisions as well as make decisions in the interest of a responsibleand open government.”
He added, such an amendment could be recommended to the PrimeMinister to bring to parliament.
“Such an amendment could be recommended to the Prime Minister for the government to consider and to bring it to parliament fordeliberations. Now the ideal situation is would be that the PrimeMinister would agree to such recommendations and would bring aConstitutional Amendment Bill so that we can rectify this, whichappears to be an apparent weakness of the Constitution.”