President hosts state luncheon to commemorate 54th anniversary of Nauru’s Constitution

President Lionel Aingimea hosted state luncheon to celebrate 54 years of Nauru’s Constitution yesterday

Enforced in January 1968 and altered by the Constitutional Convention on 17 May 1968, the foreword of the Constitution acknowledges “God as the almighty and everlasting Lord and the giver of all good things.”

“It is a foundational law of everything that Nauru does,” President Aingimea said.

“In it is the foundation of the rights of the people. In it, it dictates how governments should govern. In it, it tells us how parliament is to preside. In it, it tells how the courts are to adjudicate matters that come before it.

“When the government executes laws, and parliament passes laws, it is up to the independence of the judiciary to interpret those laws. And those checks and balances have kept us through 54 years of independence. It has governed us during hard times; it has governed us during good times.

“It has also been the foundation of the laws that we use to keep us Covid-safe. From it we put our disaster declaration to ensure that we as a country remain Covid-safe.”

The President also acknowledged the friendship of “our many friends” … Australia, Taiwan, New Zealand, and European countries “who have come to the assistance of Nauru on many occasions and on many different fronts.”

Constitution Day is celebrated annually on 17 May with a national sports carnival with the five constituencies compete in various track and field events.

 

Photo GIO