be noted that section 40 clothes the High Court with the jurisdiction to hear and determine question of membership of the House, whether a person has been validly appointed as a member of the House, or whether a person has been validly appointed as a Senator, or whether a person who has been elected to be Speaker is qualified to be so elected or has vacated the office of Speaker or whether a Member of the House has vacated his seat or is required to cease performing any of his functions as a Member of the House.) Counsel submits that in the circumstances that the Attorney General could have moved the court on behalf of the Claimants herein and or he could have been appearing on behalf of the Speaker in defence of the speaker in defence of her decision and declaration or announcement. [42] Learned Counsel, Mr. Richards, submits that based on this and for the purpose of these proceedings the Speaker of the House and the Chief Elections Officer and other named Defendants are proper Defendants. [43] I agree with learned counsel’s submission in part. I agree that if the Attorney General was acting on behalf of the Claimants, as he could have in the circumstances of this case, the Speaker of the House would have been and is in this case the competent Defendant. [44] Accordingly, I would order that the Chief Elections Officer and the members of the Electoral Commission; Defendants three through eight; are to be struck from this case as Defendants and all paragraphs of the Claim as it relates to them. [45] Learned Counsel for the Defendants referred to paragraph 27 of the first affidavit of Hector John filed on the 8th July , 2010 and paragraph 25 of the first affidavit of Mr. James filed on the 8th July, 2010 which are in identical terms and contended that there is no cause of action pleaded against Defendants numbers three through to eight. Counsel,20 Mrs. Baron- Royer stated that the Claimants have not said anything that the third to the seventh Defendants have done that was unlawful, they have not identified any 20  Paragraphs 25 & 27 respectively state “Pursuant to the issuance of the Election Writ by the President, on  the premise that I have vacated my seat in the House of Assembly, the Electoral Commission and the Chief  Elections Officer by themselves and through their agents and servants have unlawfully embarked upon  arrangements and preparations for the said by election in the constituency of Marigot”.    13