New Solomons prime minister promises positive change

Transcript

Manasseh Sogavare has been declared the prime minister of Solomon Islands on the steps of Parliament in Honiara this morning.

His election came by way of a secret ballot  and required only one round of voting with Mr Sogavare polling 31 votes over Jeremiah Manele who secured 19 votes.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Sogavare said he was humbled to be given the mandate to lead the country for the third time.

MANASSEH SOGAVARE: "I am so humbled by the mandate that parliament has put on my shoulders once again. To lead our beloved country, Solomon Islands..crowd applause distant....And I also want to take this opportunity to solemnly declare before the nation that I am committing the government  and this country that I lead into the hands of almighty God....[more applause]...We have some huge tasks immediately to do. First we realise we need a stabilisation initiative, that would come quick in the form of a mini budget. It is also important that we, we get this thing done so that despite our economic slow down benefits...[inaudible]..that we will continue to reach our people. And in the longer run of course, but not to far away we will need to prime up our economy, events and the present state of the economy may have to dictate our policies and priorities. But we must fix it if we are to have any legacies afterwards. In the next couple of days I want to assure the people of Solomon Islands, I will be directing my team to work through and amalgamate our policies to get the ball rolling. And given the urgency of some of the tasks ahead the democratic coalition for change government we will have to shorten the time for this amalgamation process, we should have a policy framework document in the well given 50 days but if it can happen before that it would be very good. But I would like to say here that my new government's vision for change isn't just political rhetoric. All of us we know of the need for redirection and reforms, change must embrace these themes, we will stress this point when we talk with all stake holders, including our international donor community, who are in the country and who help us so much. To all our traditional partners and overseas friends and RAMSI we all recognise the challenge that lies ahead in building a stronger Solomon Islands and we can all achieve that by working together. This is the path that demands our collective effort. And it is exactly for this reason that I need to ...[inaudible] ...for building stronger and constructive partnerships with our traditional allies. And important that we...[inaudible] ...this will be done in a world or region rather, we have some enterprising employers of course, opportunities lie abundant, with old and new and geographically for Solomon Islands these opportunities are just around the corner. Lastly in the next couple of days I will announce your new deputy prime minister and the cabinet ministers to the nation as the new government settles in. Thank you very much God bless Solomon Islands and God bless all of us."