HONIARA - Police and soldiers are out in force in the Solomon Islands capital Honiara this morning as MPs meet at Parliament House to vote for a new prime minister.
Former education minister Derek Sikua, the opposition candidate for the top post, looks set to beat governmentcandidate and deputy prime minister Patteson Oti in the vote by parliament's 47 MPs.
Today's vote follows the ousting of controversial Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare in a no-confidence vote last week.
Police commanders said they did not expect any unrest following the vote but were prepared and had heavy security in place.
They are determined to prevent a repeat of April last year when rioting broke out following the election by MPs of Snyder Rini as prime minister.
Two days of unrest and looting resulted in the burning down of most of Honiara's Chinatown.
More than 30 Australian police officers with the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) were injured as they confronted rock-throwing mobs.
Rini was forced to step down within days after losing the numbers in parliament.
Parliament House was under heavy guard today by Solomons police and police and soldiers of the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI).
Security forces were also doing vehicle patrols through the city and helicopter patrols overhead.
The opposition says it is confident Sikua will win today's vote.
The opposition has promised to extradite Sogavare's controversial Attorney-General Julian Moti, an Australian, to face child sex charges in Australia if it wins power.
