As Ben Smith takes over as Opposition Leader, he must still win the support of the party membership that elected Robert King last September
Ben Smith, the new Opposition Leader, says the ousting of predecessor Robert King was not a political coup, but necessary for the OBA parliamentary team to move forward.
He feels that a Ben Smith-led OBA will now be able to do what they were elected to do.
Adding some context today, Deputy OBA Leader Scott Pearman said that many MPs had approached Mr King over the past few months with concerns about his leadership style, and his ability to unite the party.
This reached a climax yesterday, as several OBA MPs asked Robert King to resign.
After he refused, nine of the eleven sitting opposition MPs brought a no confidence motion to Governor Andrew Murdoch, forcing his removal as Opposition Leader.
Today, the man he beat for the OBA leadership at a party conference last September was sworn in as new Oppostion Leader, with the support of OBA MPs.
However, when we asked Ben Smith for more detail on the issues OBA MPs had with Robert King’s leadership, Mr Smith said he will not speak poorly about him.
“Robert King is a member of this team”, he said, “…we will not speak badly of members of our team.”
All the same, Robert King remains the party leader until he resigns or the membership meets to vote on the leadership position.
So, while his fellow MPs support him, we must wait to hear the voices of the party members.
WATCH the highlights above, or watch the full live coverage of the Swearing-In Ceremony and press conference HERE…
