Tommy Remengesau Jr.
KOROR (Island Times/Pacnews) — Palau Senator Rukebai Inabo has urged the Palau Election Commission to reject former President Tommy Remengesau’s nomination petition for the Office of the President.
In a letter dated July 30, 2024, and written on the Senate Ways & Means Committee letterhead, Inabo addressed her concerns to Election Commission Chairwoman Ush Luii.
But Senator Kerai Mariur, vice chairman of the Senate Ways & Means Committee, clarified to Island Times that the letter represents Inabo’s personal opinion and not the committee’s stance.
“The Palau Supreme Court is the proper body to interpret the Constitution. The Senate does not dictate what the law means, especially when there is a difference of opinion,” Mariur stated.
“When Senator Inabo raised this issue at the July 9 session, I told her to bring this issue to court to decide,” Senate President Hokkons Baules said in a phone interview with Island Times. “Every citizen has a right to challenge a decision, but the court is the right body to interpret the law, not Congress. We represent the people through lawmaking, that is our role as congressmen.”
Inabo issued a brief statement on Facebook regarding her letter to the election commission, emphasizing her intent to be “responsible and accountable to the Palauan people who voted for me.”
In her letter to the election commission, Inabo stated that her intention was not to denigrate former President Remengesau but to have the commission “defend our nation’s Constitution and preserve democracy.”
Asked for comment, Remengesau said, “We abide by the laws and the decisions of the Palau Election Commission. We know that the Palau Election Commission conducts its due diligence according to the laws and the information before them. We followed their decision in 2012 when they reviewed the same documents.”
Remengesau also addressed the issue of his eligibility to run for office in a July 12 interview with local media, saying he had researched extensively and consulted an attorney.
He was elected president in 2000 and re-elected in 2004. In 2012, he again successfully sought the presidency and won another term in 2016 by narrowly defeating his brother-in-law, Surangel Whipps Jr., who is now Palau’s president.
Remengesau said the Palau Constitutional Convention committee reports reflect the framers’ intentions to limit the president to two consecutive terms, but it “does not stop a person from running again if the people choose to bring you back.”
According to the Palau Constitution, “A person may not serve as President for more than two consecutive terms.”
