'Third reading does not make Bill a law'

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill 32 will remain a Bill even after passing its third reading in Parliament.

It will require a referendum and the President’s assent before it can become law, Attorney-General (A-G) Sevuloni Valenitabua said.

Mr Valenitabua made the clarification amid confusion over the process for amending the Constitution compared with the passage of other Bills through Parliament.

Under the usual parliamentary process, a Bill goes through three readings. Once passed, it is presented to the President for assent before becoming law.

However, the process for the Constitution (Amendment) Bill is different.

Mr Valenitabua said once the Bill passed its third reading, the Speaker would notify the President, who must issue a writ for a referendum within seven days.

At that stage, Bill 32 would remain a Bill.

“Yeah, still a Bill, and then within seven days, the writ is issued. It can be issued the same day or two days after or whatever. From the date of the issuance of the writ, it should take 30 days, then the referendum,” he said.

The referendum requires a 50 per cent plus one majority. If that threshold is met, the Electoral Commission must notify the President that the referendum has been completed.

“Then the Bill, according to the Constitution, it’s still a Bill, then goes up to the President for assent,” Mr Valenitabua said.

If the required majority is not achieved, the Bill will not proceed to presidential assent.

“Once it fails, it fails. That’s it,” he said.

The third reading of Bill 32 has been deferred to the final sitting of Parliament, scheduled for November 30 to December 4, after the Special Parliament Select Committee was granted an additional three weeks for public consultation.