It has been confirmed that parliament will have to follow the secret ballot process to elect the new speaker of parliament.

Parliament Secretary General Viniana Namosimalua says the process will allow both the opposition and the government to nominate names and vote for who they think can become the next Speaker.

Namosimalua clarifies that one of the subsection of the constitution states that whenever there is a requirement to fill a vacancy, Parliament elects by simple majority vote.

This is the same process that was carried out when the late speaker Dr Jiko Luveni was appointed.

Meanwhile, Veena Bhatnagar is currently the Deputy Speaker of the house.