Copyright dailypost
The five applicants in the urgent constitutional challenge of the eighth constitutional amendment will be seeking the assistance of a foreign lawyer to represent them in court. According to a reliable source close from the applicants, preparations are underway to submit an application for the foreign lawyer's admission to Vanuatu's bar, which will be lodged in the Supreme Court. The source said that the reason to request a foreign lawyer stems from concerns over potential conflict of interest, given the involvement of local lawyers in the case, particularly those who participated in the referendum. The sourced added that it is expected that the defendants may similarly possible that the defendants will also seek legal representation free from any conflict of interests. These five applicants are: Andrew Wilbur Napuat, who is the Union of Moderate Parties (UMP) Member of Parliament (MP) for Tanna constituency, Allan Liki (UMP) MP of Malo /Aore, Micah Olivier (UMP) MP of Malekula, Pentecost MP Blaise Sumptoh from the Vanuatu Rural Development Party and Mathy Pehn Lange, the National United Party (NUP) MP for Pentecost. MP Sumptoh voted against the amendment in Parliament in 2023, while the four other applicants were just elected in the recent snap elections. MP Lange is the only government MP who has signed a sworn statement supporting the urgent constitutional challenge. The application has been lodged in the Supreme Court on 23 October 2025. However, the applicants said that no hearing date has been set by the court yet. Last week, the Prime Minister Jotham Napat, criticized the Opposition Bloc, claiming they were attempting to bring back the chaos of revolving-door governments that have plagued the nation for decades. The applicants replied that their challenge is about upholding constitutional rights and is not a no-confidence aimed at destabilizing the government. They also said that the urgent constitutional application concerns both Opposition and Government MPs.
