The Supreme Court has refuse the Public Prosecutors submission to order the  removal of  Epi MP, Seoule Siméon from his parliamentary seat, stating that he has not faced charges under the Leadership Code.

Justice Maree MacKenzie explained that the Public Prosecutor had not laid charges against Siméon under the Leadership Code, which was the main reason for the decision. Although the Public Prosecutor requested the court to issue an order to disqualify the MP, Justice MacKenzie refused.

The judge highlighted four main reasons behind the ruling:

1. No Leadership Code charges – The prosecution did not formally charge Siméon under the code.
2. Value of the vehicle – The vehicle involved was valued between VT100,000 and VT200,000, which the court considered a minor amount compared to the level of trust lost through the offence.
3. Sentence already imposed – The punishment given had already addressed the full scale of the offence.
4. Other remedies available – The judge said there may be other processes that could address Siméon’s position.

Siméon, who was Minister of Youth and Sports in 2018 when he obtained the vehicle, was first elected in 2016 and has since retained his Epi seat through the 14th legislature. He later went on to serve as Speaker of Parliament. The 54-year-old MP has 14 days to appeal his sentence.

Justice MacKenzie set out her reasoning in the written judgment, stating:

“There is one final matter. In his written submissions, Mr Young submits that the Court should make orders under the Leadership Code (‘the Code’) dismissing you from office under s 41 of the Leadership Code and disqualify you from standing for election for a period of 10 years under s 42. Mr Morrison opposes any such orders, and in his written submissions contended that these are not matters within the sentencing jurisdiction. Rather, they may be the proper and end result of a statutory process but are not matters for the Court in sentencing you today… I note that Mr Young did not provide any authorities to support the submission.”

“In this case, I decline to exercise the Court’s discretion to make a dismissal order under s 41 of the Leadership Code. My reasons are as follows:
a. You did not face a charge of breach of the Leadership Code…
b. While I regard this as serious offending for the reasons set out at some length, the amount involved is low…
c. Any punishment must be proportionate. It must reflect the purposes and principles of sentencing… To dismiss you under s 41 would be overly punitive in the particular circumstances of this case…
d. Finally, as Mr Morrison submitted, there may well be other processes that will address your suitability to be an elected politician and a leader.”

Siméon was Minister of Youth and Sports in 2018 when he obtained the vehicle in question. He was first elected in 2016 and has since retained his Epi seat through the 14th legislature. He later went on to serve as Speaker of Parliament.