CHUAVE MP James Nomane says he is the duly elected Leader of the Opposition.
He says10 out of 18 MPs in the Opposition caucus endorsed his nomination as the Leader of the Opposition (OL) in June after incumbent Douglas Tomuriesa was appointed leader of the People’s Progress Party.
Mr Nomane said Parliament Speaker Job Pomat had failed to recognise his appointment as the new OL and allowed Mr Tomuriesa to continue to occupy the position and appoint North Fly MP James Donald to replace him as Deputy Opposition Leader.
“This was a natural ascension from my position as Deputy Leader of the Opposition (“DOL”) after the incumbent OL, Hon Douglas Tomuriesa, became leader of the People’s Progress Party (PPP) and reduced himself to a one-man party,” Mr Nomane said today.
“Mr Tomuriesa did not relinquish the OL position and adopted legalese in defending his position speaking of an ambivalent “process”, notwithstanding the glaring fact that under the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy, majority rules!
“On 29 July 2025, almost two months after I should have been the OL, the Speaker Hon Job Pomat, announced in Parliament that he would recognise Mr Tomuriesa as the OL and Hon James Donald as the new DOL, further asking Opposition MPs to go back and settle the matter, again.
“Adhering to his letter, the majority of Opposition MPs wrote individually to the Speaker for him to recognise that I was the new OL for the second time.
“On 8 August 2025, the Speaker was about to announce that I was the OL when Hon Brian Kramer interjected, erroneously citing that a legal process for the change of OL was prescribed in section 64 of the Organic Law on the
Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates (OLIPPAC).
“Mr. Kramer’s posturing was premature and frivolous, to say the least. What was Mr. Kramer’s motive for interfering, knowing full well that he is another one-man party?
When the Hon Peter O’Neill clarified that parliamentary convention demands that the party with the largest numbers in either the government or opposition forms the leadership on either side of the aisle, the Speaker should have simply recognised the decision made by the majority of Members in the Opposition.
“This was met with resistance by a very vocal and reactive Prime Minister, Hon James Marape, who was in support of Mr Tomuriesa. Why is the Prime Minister supporting Tomuriesa and going so low to play politics over my appointment as OL?
“The Speaker buckled under the pressure of the Prime Minister and the superfluous interjection by Mr Kramer.
The one thing the Prime Minister, Mr. Tomuriesa and the Speaker have in common is they are all weak as water. It’s a crying shame! If the Speaker does not recognise that I am the legitimate Leader of the Opposition after two votes by Opposition Members showing majority support, then the National Court of Justice will.
Mr Tomuriesa can bring his numbers to court and elucidate on the bogus “process” he is relying on.
“I will become the OL and I will take the Prime Minister Hon James Marape to task. No more word salads, no more blabbering, no misfires, no compromise.
“I invite Mr Tomuriesa to stop pretending and take his seat on the government side and watch me fight the good fight for the people of Papua New Guinea. Mr Tomuriesa has lost the legitimacy and support of the majority of MPs in Opposition and cannot be holding himself out as the OL,” Mr Nomane concluded.