Transcript
TITABU TABANE: One of our MPs, the one to raise the motion, is a member of the Association of Pacific Island Legislatures, normally the countries further up in the north, the Micronesian area. We just had an annual meeting in June in Pohnpei and the member of the opposition, Kaure Babo, was attending, the Speaker was the leader of the delegation although he is not a member, and another member from the government side. There had been concerns about his behaviour, associated with being under the influence.
DON WISEMAN: He was drunk you are saying?
TT: It is more or less correct to say he was under the influence. He was acting OK but you could see his eyes red and this. What I am saying is he was acting beyond the position he [should] as the Speaker, by engaging in what we believe amounted to sexual harassment. First before they left Pohnpei on the plane [in] the departure lounge he did those kind of things. And secondly he was saying to the Deputy Clerk of Pohnpei her skirt looks good but she would be much better looking if she takes off the skirt. And then whilst on the plane he consumed some more drinks and while the air hostess was doing preliminary demonstrations he started behaving irrationally, disgracefully - poking out his tongue, and rolling it, looking at the hostess, trying to attract her attention and wanting to take a photo with her. I think at that point the hostess had to report it to the pilot and so on. He was about to be thrown off the plane but at the insistence of one of the delegates from Kiribati they said they would deal with the matter here [in Kiribati], so we might as well let him on. Otherwise he would have been off the plane, somewhere maybe in Majuro in the Marshall Islands.
DW: You want him out but he's not letting your motion in him get before parliament. What else can you do to get it before parliament?
TT: Nothing. We are trying to seek the assistance of the government, by writing to the government, the president and his executives. They have not replied to our concerns that we still would want the matter to be raised in parliament.
DW: OK so at the moment then it is a wait and see, to see whether or not the government will come round, otherwise you are not going to remove him.
TT: No nothing much we can do in court because these are merely allegations, unless you know he admits to them. At the moment it's our constitutional right - under the constitution we can get rid of him by voting him out.
DW: But you need a two thirds majority to get rid of him?
TT: Two thirds majority. Even given the opportunity to debate it in parliament - he just closed everything on it.
