[New post] President Baldwin Lonsdale’s enormous contributions remembered following his death

WordPress.com Vanuatu Digest posted: " President Baldwin Lonsdale has died at Vila Central Hospital early this morning after being rushed to hospital last night. President Lonsdale has been head of state in September 2014. From Mota Lava island, Lonsdale was previously an Anglican pries" Respond to this post by replying above this line New post on Vanuatu Digest President Baldwin Lonsdale’s enormous contributions remembered following his death by Vanuatu Digest President Baldwin Lonsdale in 2016. Photo: supplied President Baldwin Lonsdale has died at Vila Central Hospital early this morning after being rushed to hospital last night. President Lonsdale has been head of state in September 2014. From Mota Lava island, Lonsdale was previously an Anglican priest, Secretary-General of Torba Province. The head of state played a critical role in recent events in Vanuatu. While category 5 Cyclone Pam was battering Vanuatu in March 2015, President Lonsdale was attending a world conference on disaster risk reduction in Japan, and his emotional appeals for international assistance helped galvanise the international humanitarian response to Cyclone Pam. But arguably his greatest contribution came just seven months later in October 2015 when the then Speaker of Parliament Marcellino Pipite abused his position as Acting President to issue a 'presidential pardon' to himself and the 13 other MPs who had just been convicted of bribery. The President, en route from Samoa during Pipite's attempt to undermine the rule of law, returned to Vanuatu and immediately revoked the pardon. During a televised address to the nation, President Lonsdale was visibly upset, expressing his "shame and sorrow" at Pipite's misuse of his powers. He vowed to "clean the dirt from my backyard", telling Vanuatu's people that "we as a nation have to stop these crooked ways". Following a failed appeal against his revocation of Pipite's giaman pardon, Lonsdale then dissolved Parliament and called a snap election. President Lonsdale's actions were widely seen as a decisive blow against Vanuatu's culture of impunity for corrupt politicians. Addressing the newly-elected MPs at the opening session of Parliament following the election, he described the new legislature as a "new chart for Vanuatu's destiny". He will also be remembered also for his leadership of Vanuatu's Anglican church, and his strong support for kastom and for women's rights. The Vanuatu Government is currently making arrangements with his family and Motalava chiefs for a state funeral. Vanuatu Digest | June 17, 2017 at 1:57 pm | Categories: The Daily Digest | URL: http://wp.me/p2A4RK-1HA Comment    See all comments Unsubscribe to no longer receive posts from Vanuatu Digest. Change your email settings at Manage Subscriptions. Trouble clicking? Copy and paste this URL into your browser: http://ift.tt/2slhU3Z Thanks for flying with WordPress.com

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