A motion of no confidence in
Prime Minister Jotham Napat has been withdrawn before it
could go to a vote in Vanuatu’s parliament.
On Sunday,
Napat, who leads a coalition government of five parties,
said that he felt confident he would see the motion off
after it was lodged at the beginning of last week by
opposition MPs.
The reasons listed in the motion
included the unfair allocation of ministerial portfolios and
alleged misuse of government investment
funds.
“Despite the many confusing reports circulating
ahead of [Monday’s] vote, the Government wishes to reassure
the people of Vanuatu that the five coalition partners in
Government are united and ready to defeat the motion,” the
Vanuatu Prime Minister’s Office said in a
statement.
“We have assessed the motion. The
Opposition has no valid grounds.”
In mid-October,
Napat shut
down claims that he could be facing a leadership
challenge when parliament resumed this week.
Napat
said the government acknowledged that there were areas of
governance that needed strengthening and that it had been
saddled with issues left unattended for many
years.
But he said that the no-confidence motion, in
large part, had “no substance.”
Napat was elected as
Vanuatu’s prime minister in February 2025 – the country’s
fifth in as many years.
He also defeated
a no-confidence vote less than 12 months into the top
job.
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