Belden Namah

Belden Namah (born 30 December 1969) is a Papua New Guinean politician. Namah is a member of the National Parliament for the Papua New Guinea Party, and has represented Vanimo-Green River District since 2007. He served in the Cabinet from 2007 to 2010, and as Deputy Prime Minister from 2011 to 2012. In 2012, Namah became a member of the opposition. After retaining his seat in the 2022 election, he said that he would not rejoin the opposition.[1]

Belden Namah
MP
Opposition Leader of Papua New Guinea
In office
2021–2022
Preceded byPatrick Pruaitch
Succeeded byJoseph Lelang
In office
2012–2014
Preceded byCarol Kidu
Succeeded byDon Polye
In office
2011–2011
Preceded byMekere Morauta
Succeeded byCarol Kidu
Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea
In office
2011–2012
Prime MinisterPeter O'Neill
Preceded bySam Abal
Succeeded byLeo Dion
Minister for Forestry
In office
2007–2010
Prime MinisterMichael Somare
Member of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea
Assumed office
2007
ConstituencyVanimo-Green River Open
Personal details
Born (1969-12-30) 30 December 1969
NationalityPapua New Guinean
Political partyPapua New Guinea Party (2012–)
Other political
affiliations		National Alliance Party (2007-2010)
Alma materDuntroon

Military career

Namah is from Vanimo, near Papua New Guinea's border with Indonesia.[2] He joined the military, graduated from Australia's Royal Military College in Duntroon, and was trained for a special-forces unit (SFU). During the Sandline affair, Namah was one of five PNG Defence Force (PNGDF) officers who arrested Sandline International founder Tim Spicer. Sandline had been hired by the PNG government to recapture the Panguna mine on Bougainville Island and end an insurrection there.[3] The SFU, under the direction of PNGDF commander Jerry Singirok, took the Sandline contractors hostage and announced the cancellation of their contract.[4] Namah and his fellow officers were convicted of mutiny.[5][6][7][8][9]

Parliamentary career

In 2007, Namah entered Parliament as a member of the National Alliance Party and became Minister of Forestry and Natural Resources in the Michael Somare-Puka Temu cabinet.[2] In 2010, he resigned from the cabinet and joined Mekere Morauta and the Papua New Guinea Party. Namah became part of the opposition leading to the overthrow of the Somare government, and was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Forestry and National Resources in Peter O'Neill's cabinet during the 2011–2012 constitutional crisis. Retaining his seat in 2012, 2017 and 2022 elections, he lost his cabinet post after the 2012 election and was opposition leader from 2012 to 2014.

After Namah was deposed as opposition leader in 2014, he tried to become governor of Sandaun Province (his home province). The post was vacant because the election of Amkat Mai was nullified, and it could be filled by another MP in the province.[10] Namah became interim governor, mobilising support from local politicians which was challenged by the provincial administration, and withdrew from an April 2015 by-election for governor.[11] Amkat Mai's appeal against disqualification was successful and he was returned as Governor.[12] In April 2018, Namah was dismissed from office by the Leadership Tribunal.[2] Namah was readmitted to Parliament in July 2018.[13]

Namah became de facto leader of the opposition, where he led two initiatives to seize power. He challenged the succession of Peter O'Neill by James Marape in court (which he lost),[14] and led a campaign for a vote of no confidence to replace Marape with Patrick Pruaitch. This attempt also failed after the opposition split between Pruaitch and Sam Basil. Basil's supporters returned to government with Pruaitch, but Namath remained in the opposition.[15] Namah again attempted to generate a vote of no confidence and backed O'Neill as prime minister.[16] In 2022, Namah announced he would leave the opposition and join the government. He was appointed in September 2022 as Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Parliament Committee.[17]

Court cases

In 2015, the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier reported that sixteen charges of misconduct had been brought against Namah by the Ombudsman Commission.[18] In May 2012, Namah stormed into the Supreme Court, accused Chief Justice Salomo Injia of sedition, and demanded his resignation.[19] The court had upheld a December 2011 ruling that the O'Neill-Namah government was illegal, and the incident was referred to the Ombudsman Commission as misconduct in office. Namah apologised soon afterwards to former Prime Minister Michael Somare and Injia for his behaviour during the 2011-2012 parliamentary crisis.[20] After several delays, a Leadership Tribunal recommended Namah's removal from office.[21]

Namah was referred by the prosecutor to a Leadership Tribunal in October 2016, four-and-a-half years after the events took place, and was suspended from his post.[22] The tribunal reached a decision in April 2018, and recommended his dismissal from office.[23] Namah asked for a judicial review of his dismissal and called the ruling a miscarriage of justice; of several MPs involved in storming the Supreme Court, Namah was the only one prosecuted.[24] In September 2020, the Supreme Court dismissed an application for an injunction against a 16 July National Court ruling which favoured Namah.[25] Although Namah's challenge to the 2019 appointment of James Marape was rejected by the Supreme Court the following year,[26] he was again recognised as Opposition Leader.[27]

Ethical issues

Namah said that Prime Minister Peter O'Neill was disqualified from also being the acting Minister of Police.[28] O'Neill asked authorities to investigate how Namah obtained K50 million in 2012 campaign spending.[29]

Namah was reportedly ejected from a Sydney casino in because of misbehaviour, but was readmitted because he was a high roller.[30] Police requested an interview with him in June 2013 about the possible misappropriation of A$4.6 million meant for a road project in West Sepik, but Namah denied the allegation.[31]

Political views

When Namah became deputy prime minister in 2011, he said that any government he might lead would aim to provide free universal education and healthcare, and to "fix the law and order problem in this country". Prospective university students would serve two years in the military, and Papua New Guinean scientists working on climate change would be supported.[32]

During the run-up to the 2022 election, Namah advocated privatising state enterprises. Saying that the PNG economy was import-driven, he wanted to make it an export-driven economy.[33]

Personal life

Namah, a Seventh Day Adventist,[2] is married with children.[34]

References
  1. Lulu Maginde (3 August 2022). "Namah: Not going back to Opposition". The National. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  2. "Hon. Belden Namah, MP". National Parliament of Papua New Guinea. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  3. Mary-Louise O'Galaghan (1999). Enemies Within: Papua New Guinea, Australia and the Sandline Crisis – The Inside Story. Sydney: Doubleday, pp. 94ff.
  4. Sean Dorney (1998). The Sandline Affair: Politics and Mercenaries and the Bougainville Crisis. Sydney: ABC Books, p. 237.
  5. "PM 'was briefed on Nuia's arrest'". Archived from the original on 1 April 2012.
  6. "The Wrong People are Behind Bars" (Press release). Bougainville Freedom Movement. 19 December 1997. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  7. "Stop witch-hunt on Belden Namah". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 14 September 2006. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  8. "PNG opposition elects new leader", Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 10 May 2011
  9. Garrett, Jemima; Connors, Adam (17 March 2016). "No regrets over PNG's Sandline affair, former PM Sir Julius Chan says". ABC News. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  10. "Namah to contest Sandaun province seat". 15 February 2015. Archived from the original on 24 December 2017. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  11. Johnny Blades (16 February 2015). "Uncertainty surrounds West Sepik governorship". Radio New Zealand. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  12. Ekupe (24 August 2015). "New governor welcomed back to job". Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  13. "Namah and Amuli return". National Parliament of Papua New Guinea. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  14. "PNG Supreme Court dismisses challenge to Marape's election". Asia Pacific Report. 27 November 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  15. "A sigh of relief". The National. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  16. Miriam Zariga (9 April 2021). "Namah: Vote-of-no-confidence motion still pursued". The National. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  17. "Hon. Belden Namah - Eleventh Parliament of Papua New Guinea". parliament.gov.pg. Archived from the original on 2022-12-22. Retrieved 2022-12-22.
  18. Cochrane, Liam (2015-04-14). "PNG's former opposition leader accused of misconduct". ABC News. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  19. "Namah storms into PNG Supreme Court". RNZ. 2012-05-24. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  20. "PNG opposition leader apologises for pre-election antics to oust Somare". Radio New Zealand. 24 October 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2023.
  21. "Belden Namah - Leadership Tribunal". Loop PNG. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  22. "Namah Challenges His 'Dismissal' by Leadership Tribunal". PNG Facts. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  23. "PNG MP may be dismissed from office for misconduct". Radio New Zealand. 9 April 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  24. Jeffrey Elepa (16 April 2018). "Namah To Go Back To Court To Seek Justice". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  25. Karo Jesse (11 September 2020). "Namah proceeding with cases". The National. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  26. Theckla Gunga (29 May 2020). "Namah Application Rejected". EM TV. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  27. "Speaker recognises Namah". The National. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  28. "PNG's Opposition Leader calls out Prime Minister". ABC News. 2013-10-18. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  29. "Prime Minister O'Neill wants probe into Namah's election spending". PNG Facts. 19 August 2014. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  30. Gridneff, Sean Nicholls, Matthew Moore, Ilya (2012-03-13). "The minister, the Star and the rules of the game". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2023-03-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  31. "Bid to query PNG oppn leader over funds". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2013-06-05. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  32. Isaac Nichoias (8 May 2011). "PNG party prefers free education over OBE". The National. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  33. "Namah eyes privatisation of government firms". The National. 24 June 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  34. Belden Namah in The Governments of Papua New Guinea (2012). Port Moresby: IMPS Research.
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