7 Mar 2011

Samoa's opposition party looks to lodge petitions after HRPP election win

5:42 am on 7 March 2011

Samoa's opposition party will this week look at lodging as many as 14 election petitions this week.

The Tautua Samoa party won 13 seats in the country's election this weekend that returned the ruling HRPP party to power with 36 seats.

The party's president Va'aelua Ete Alesana says 14 candidates are eligible to lodge petitions, having won half the total of the winning candidates in their seats.

"But that is based on an individual basis. It's based on how the candidates feel, and the chances of winning. They have to have all the evidence in line. We have five or six attorneys in our party, they've all offered their help with the cases, if we come to that."

There are also two cases where MPs were disqualified before the election, and Va'aelua Ete Alesana says that decision may be appealed too.