Review books are being prepared and will be settled by Monday July 18 where parties in the Kandep seat review case will return to the Supreme Court.
The matter came for directions on Thursday afternoon before the Supreme Court where instructions were issued for parties.
Lawyers for Don Polye and Alfred Luke Manase will prepare a consolidated review book for both Supreme Court election petition reviews.
A hearing date will be set after next Monday for this review, which has been placed among cases to be fast tracked or prioritised by the Supreme Court.
Last Friday, July 4, a three-judge Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices Allan David, Jacinta Murray and Frazer Pitpit handed down their decisions on four preliminary applications brought by both parties.
A stay was agreed to by both parties to put the counting of the five boxes, which the National Court on May 2 had ordered on halt, pending the outcome of the reviews.
A stay application by Polye was also granted last Friday by the full court to temporarily stop the National Court’s decision to set aside Polye’s election as member elect for Kandep Open on May 2, pending the determination of the substantive reviews.
On May 2, Justice Joseph Yagi of the Waigani National Court set aside the declared election of Polye as member for Kandep Open on July 13, 2012.
He ordered the Electoral Commission to count five ballot boxes that were disputed during the General Elections within 30 days from May 2. The five boxes were not counted after they were disputed. The boxes are from the areas of Lungutenges No.1, Kombros No.1, Kambia No. 1, Maru and Imipaka.
While the Electoral Commission was preparing to get the five disputed ballot boxes counted, Polye filed a judicial review before the Supreme Court which went in his favour on May 24, reinstating him as the Member elect for Kandep Open.
(Loop File picture of Polye and Manase.)