Samoa’s first female prime minister has been sworn into office in a tent after she was locked out of parliament by her opponent, who has refused to step down.
Fiame Naomi Mata’afa took the oath of office in a marquee in the parliament’s gardens, leaving uncertainty over who controls the Pacific island nation.
Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, who has been prime minister for 22 years, has ignored a court order to step down.
Ms Mata’afa, 64, arrived at parliament on Monday expecting to be sworn in.
But the former deputy prime minister, who arrived alongside the chief justice, found herself barred from the building, which had been locked by allies of Mr Malielegaoi in advance of her arrival.
Instead, Ms Mata’afa and members of her Faatuatua i le Atua Samoa ua Tasi (Fast) party gathered in a marquee in parliament’s gardens, in the capital Apia, with supporters looking on, and were sworn in one by one.
The ad-hoc ceremony was rejected by rivals as unofficial. Mr Malielegaoi called the improvised swearing-in ceremony “illegal and unlawful”.
The controversy comes a month after the closest-run general election in Samoa’s history, which was followed by bitter disputes and legal challenges.
Credit: bbc.com
The post Samoa’s 1st female PM sworn into office in a tent; after being locked out of parliament appeared first on The Chronicle Online.
Read Full Story
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Instagram
Google+
YouTube
LinkedIn
RSS