King Tupou VI refused to meet with former Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pōhiva because he did not do things he had agreed to do, it has been claimed.
Prime Minister Pōhiva Tu’i’onetoa also said he had been told the late Hon. Pōhiva gave inaccurate reports to the media about his meetings with the monarch.
“The king told me in our first audience there was a lot of things which they discussed and agreed with ‘Akilisi Pōhiva, but ‘Akilisi did not do most of them,” Hon. Tu’i’onetoa told Kaniva News.
“The king said ‘Akilisi also told media things different from what they met about.
“This was the reason why he did not want to meet with ‘Akilisi again.”
The constitution requires them to meet.
Clause 50A (3) of the constitution says: “The Prime Minister shall regularly and as required report to the King upon matters that have arisen with the government and upon the state of the country.”
READ MORE:
- King may be misinformed about government matters after refusing PM’s meeting requests since dissolution source claims
- King rejects PM’s proposal to become member of Privy Council and to increase powers over Police Commissioner
- ʻAkilisi Pōhiva to run for Parliament again, king’s dissolution decision divides nation
- Royal audience with PM resolves issues may arise in Privy Council and Cabinet as King agrees to sign PACER Plus
In April last year we reported that King Tupou VI had rejected requests for an audience by Prime Minister Pōhiva.
Hon. Pōhiva told Kaniva News in an interview he had sent a number of requests but he was told the king was busy. He said he wanted to know why the king refused to meet him.
It was understood the Prime Minister and the king had not met for the 18 months prior to our story.
A source told us the king may have received wrong information about government matters because he had refused to meet with the Prime Minister.
The source said king Tupou VI had been unavailable for meetings with Hon. Pōhiva since he dissolved Parliament in 2017. The government was re-elected in a snap election.
The Palace Office could not be reached for comment.
Our report drew a strong response from PTOA supporters who took it further on social media and criticised the king.
However, until now there has been no concrete evidence on why the king did not want to meet Hon. Pōhiva.
The main points
- King Tupou VI refused to meet with former Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva because he did not do things he had agreed to do, it has been claimed.
- Prime Minister Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa also said he had been told the late Hon. Pohiva gave inaccurate reports to the media about his meetings with the monarch.
