Excerpt and featured photo from benarnews.org
Tonga’s cabinet has rejected an attempt by the Pacific island country’s king to sack the defense and foreign affairs ministers as unconstitutional and has continued with government business including hosting visiting officials.
King Tupou VI last week withdrew his confidence in Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni, in his capacity as defense minister, and also ordered the dismissal of the foreign affairs minister, setting up a possible conflict with the government.
The legal opinion of Tonga’s attorney-general is that Tupou VI’s decision, which was conveyed in a letter by his council of advisors, was “contrary” to Tonga’s constitution, the Cabinet said in a statement it released Tuesday evening.
“Moreover, the current legal advice was consistent with all past advice on the same issue, sent from the Attorney General’s office to the Palace Office,” the statement said. The Cabinet has decided to convey the legal advice to the Palace by letter, it said.
Tonga’s constitution says that cabinet ministers can be removed by the king on the prime minister’s recommendation or a vote of no confidence in Parliament in the case of the prime minister. Tonga, home to about 100,000 people, is the only Pacific island nation to have a constitutional monarch.