Government Briefs
Government Briefs
Kiribati Taiwan has funded the purchase of 15 new Nissan Cefiros at a cost of A$551,815, cars that will be used for VIPs attending the coming 25th silver jubilee independence celebration on July 12th. Taiwan Ambassador Samuel Chen says Taiwan was pleased to make this contribution for this unique celebration. After the event, the cars will be distributed to various government ministries. - ADVERTISEMENT -
-BB Kiribati Cooperative Copra Society exported about 800 tons of copra to Vanuatu in April. Acting manager Tamaroa Tebwaki says this fulfils an agreement with the Holland Commodities Company in Vanuatu. The bulk of copra produced in Kiribati is bought by the Kiribati Copra Mill, on Tarawa, which just started operating this year. -BB
Marshall Islands The Marshall Islands retirement fund invested $750,000 in United States stocks and bonds in April, a move that increased its total investments to $38.2 million. Marshall Islands Social Security Administration (MISSA) administrator Saane Aho says MISSA has halted a past practice of withdrawing funds from investments to pay retirement benefits and instead has been reinvesting money each year. Aggressive tax collection, which has seen a rise from $5.5 million in 1999 to $13 million last year, and significant reductions in administrative costs have made this possible, she says. -GJ CNMI China Southern Air's inaugural flight from Shanghai arrived on Saipan on the morning of April 24 with 198 passengers on board. Lieutenant Governor Diego T. Benavente represented the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas government on the flight. Commonwealth Ports Authority (CPA) Executive Director Carlos H. Salas says this is the beginning of the air carrier's twice-weekly flights from Shanghai. -FR Guam Lieutenant Governor Kaleo Moylan filed a lawsuit against Governor Felix Camacho on April 20. Moylan contends that Camacho overstepped his authority when he fired two members of the lieutenant governor's staff, including his chief of staff, and removed the State Clearinghouse-an agency to oversee federal grant money-from the lieutenant governor's office. The suit was filed in the Superior Court of Guam, but on April 27, the governor requested the Guam Supreme Court rule on the matter, halting the lower court's proceedings. The Supreme Court agreed to expedite the matter and a decision was pending as Pacific Magazine went to press. -FW Palau In mid-April the Palau Election Committee certified a popular initiative petition calling for amendments to the Constitution including a single legislative chamber, one ticket for president and vice president, dual citizenship for Palauans, and term limits and standardized compensation for lawmakers. The petition was launched by President Tommy E. Remengesau, Jr., signed by the compulsory 25 percent of voters and met all Constitutional requirements. The referendum will occur during the November 2004 elections. -NC Papua New Guinea Opposition Leader Sir Mekere Morauta's PNG Party is moving to join the coalition government of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare. The shift has jolted Opposition-aligned parliamentarians with Milne Bay Governor Tim Neville, Andrew Baing and Dr Banare Bun crying foul. The three leaders and 11 other parliamentarians subsequently held a snap election in May, installing Baing as new Opposition Leader. But Morauta has questioned the legality of Baing's appointment saying he is still Opposition Leader until acting Parliament speaker Jeffery Nape rules on the matter. Somare's major coalition partners, the Peoples Action Party and Peoples National Congress say they will not surrender three ministries to Morauta's party. -AR Papua New Guinea will soon join 10 other Pacific states that have signed the controversial "Article 98" agreement with the U.S. government. The agreement provides bilateral immunity to citizens of both the U.S. and the signatory country from prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC). PNG Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare has announced his government's intention to be a signatory. Critics argue that the U.S. is misusing Article 98 of the Rome Statute of the ICC, which mainly focuses on war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. The U.S. views the Rome Statute as flawed. -AR Samoa The government of Samoa has imposed a ban on the use of air tanks for fishing due to concerns over exploitation of reef resources. "This is one management measure to try and protect against over-exploitation of fish," said Amituana'i Tavita Sasi of the government's fisheries division. -FS American Samoa Former attorney general Tautai Aviata Fano Faalevao, chairman of the Republican Party of American Samoa and current Public Defender, and Dr. Falema'o Matina Phil Pili, will be the Republican candidates for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively, in November. Other announced teams for the election are Governor Togiola Tulafono and Lt. Governor Aitofele Sunia; Senator Te'o J. Fuavai and Senator Alo Dr. Paul Stevenson; and Afoa Moega Lutu and Taeaoafua Dr. Meki Solomona. -FS Fiji While thousands of people huddled in classrooms after their belongings were swept away by raging floodwaters, the Lower House passed a bill for a significant salary increase. Opposition Leader Mick Beddoes labeled the parliamentarians "insensitive" for voting themselves pay increases after a flash flood wrought havoc on food supplies, rendering some 500 families homeless and killing 10 people. The measure, which was included with a US$7 million supplementary appropriations bill that included flood relief and funding for the recent state funeral for Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, was ultimately passed by both houses. More than US$1 million is going towards the pay increase. Finance Minister Ratu Jone Kubuabola says the salary increase for the MPs was merged into the flood relief and funeral bill because there was not enough time to separate it. -MR University of the South Pacific professor Ron Duncan warns against Pacific Island nations' tendency to use superannuation funds in local economies. After releasing the 2004 Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific in Suva recently, Duncan said governments should behave like a trustee for the people's money; ensuring maximum value is maintained. Duncan pointed to the recent collapse of the Papua New Guinea provident fund and riots in Vanuatu streets when people realized they couldn't access their savings, as examples of the problems of poor fund management. In Fiji, Duncan says, "they made the provident fund bring money back which was invested overseas to support the exchange rate. That's an inappropriate use of people's savings." -MR Contributors: Frank Rosario, Frank Whitman, Nancy Chism, Alex Rheeney, Fili Sagapolutele, Giff Johnson, Batiri Bataua and Matelita Ragogo |
