|
|
|
|
The composition and make-up of the Legislative Assembly is founded by the Constitution of Tonga 1875, that was enacted by King George Tupou I in recognition of the inherent rights of the people of Tonga. The traditional composition of the Legislative Assembly is made up of 12 Cabinet Ministers, 9 Representatives of the Nobles and 9 Representatives of the People.
His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV appoints the Cabinet Ministers for such term as he pleases and they sit in the Legislative Assembly as “Nobles” per the Constitution. Each Cabinet Minister has one or more portfolios that represent a Ministry of government in which they are the Head of the Ministry. Cabinet Ministers per the Constitution also sit in the Privy Council with His Majesty King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV. Cabinet Ministers are accountable to the King and as such, the King must have confidence in his Ministers to Head the various governmental Ministries. The government (also known as the “Executive”) run the day-day administration of country but must do so within the boundaries of the Constitution and Laws enacted by the Legislative Assembly. In cases where the government do exceed their powers, such exercise of discretion maybe pronounce unlawful (and hence the government decision or order is “void”) by the courts because it contradicts the laws of Tonga or in some cases the Constitution. Because of this very fact, it is important that the 3 branches of government, (i) the Legislative Assembly, (ii) the Executive, and (iii) the Judiciary are independent from each other, so that that each branch can keep the other two branches in check (Separation of Powers).
The makeup of the Legislative Assembly of Tonga is vastly different from many of the Legislative systems in other parliaments in the South Pacific. These differences maybe summarised as follows: · Firstly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, the government (represented by the Ministers) never has a majority in the House and as such must rely on the support of either the Representatives of the Nobles or the Representatives of the People in order to get legislation through the House; · Secondly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, the government does not need the confidence of the House in order to govern, only the confidence of His Majesty. For example, New Zealand has a concept known as “Responsible Ministers”, whereby Ministers are accountable to the House. As such where for some reason the Legislative Assembly (or the House of Representatives as is known over there) losses confidence in its Ministers, they may ask for a confidence vote. If the government is defeated in a confidence vote, then it is within the discretion of the Governor-General (the Queens Representative in these countries) to either – (i) call an election; or (ii) ask the Leader of the Opposition to form a government. However, it is important to note that the convention is for the Governor General to listen to the advice of its Ministers, which is usual in such situations to call an early election. This is very different with the procedure that happens in Tonga. When the House looses confidence in a Minister they do not ask the Speaker for a vote of confidence, but ask that the Minister be impeached. This procedure is very similar with the procedure used in the United States. The process of impeachment is very similar to a court action, because the Legislative Assembly would put the Minister on trial and the Chief Justice presides over the hearing. Members of the Legislative Assembly would sit as jurors. A guilty verdict by the jurors could mean instant expulsion from the House and their Ministerial portfolios. Since the government (the Executive) never has a majority in the House, verdicts of accountability are more transparent. · Thirdly, unlike other parliaments in the South Pacific, there is no party system in Tonga. Nobles and the Peoples Representatives all run for elections as independents. However, many People’s Representative candidates, such as some of the incumbents in the last election of 2004, campaigned together and on the same principals and are members of the Tonga Democratic Movement. Furthermore, in April 2005, a Party called the People's Democratic Party, was formed by Prof. Futa Helu and the former Minister of Police, Clive Edwards, but as yet, they do not have any seat in the House. [ Back to Top ]
|
Send mail to
webmaster@parliament.gov.to with
questions or comments about this web site.
|
However, in late 2004, His
Majesty King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV (pictured left) on advice the Prime Minister HRH Prince ‘Ulukalala Lavaka ‘Ata announced
that 2 new Ministers would be appointed from the Representative of the Nobles
and 2 from the Representatives of the People’s respectively. In recognition
that the Constitution specifically states that there must be 9 Nobles Reps and 9
People’s Reps, an election would be held to replenish the vacant seats of the
newly appointed Ministers. 
The electoral system in
Tonga is outlined by the Constitution and the procedural laws relating to its
implementation are detailed in the Legislative Assembly Act (Cap. 4) and the
Electoral Act 1989. Traditionally, 18 members of the Legislative Assembly are
elected in a General Election rather than appointed by His Majesty. Within
these seats, 9 Representatives are elected by the 33 Noble families in Tonga and
the 9 Representatives of are elected by the People of Tonga. Electoral Seats
for both the Nobles and Peoples Representatives respectively are divided as
follows—3 seats in Tonga, 2 seats in Vava’u, 2 seats in Ha’apai, 1 in ‘Eua and 1
in Ha’apai. The Representatives are elected for a term of 3 years. Currently
the longest serving member in the Legislative Assembly is the Peoples No. 1
Representative (Tonga) Mr.