A letter from the Privy Council’s Appointment Panel in 2015 to former Minister of Police Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa contained a request to Cabinet to confirm what it had agreed with New Zealand on the Police Commissioner’s pay.
The letter, which was written by former clerk of the Panel, Rosamond C. Bing, on 23 January 2015 was intended to ask the government to confirm it agreed with a draft contract of the current police commissioner Steve Caldwell.
Bing wanted to make sure the two governments reached a conclusion on the pay before the Panel recommended Mr. Caldwell’s appointment to the king.
She said the Panel had nothing to do with the commissioner’s pay and because Tonga had no Police Commissioner at the time she asked for an urgent response from the minister.
“Obviously any appointment of actual salary terms for Mr. Caldwell’s appointment must be negotiated between the New Zealand government and the Tongan government and that is not something the Panel is in a position to undertake,” Ms Fonua wrote.
The letter was sent to the Minister and copied to New Zealand’s then High Commissioner in Tonga, Mark Talbot, together with a copy of former Police Commissioner Grant O’Fee’s contract.
Bing wrote: “The Panel has assumed that the same arrangement will apply with respect to the appointment of Mr. Caldwell however before we are in a position to make a recommendation to His Majesty in Privy Council as to what the specific benefits and supplementary should be, we need to know what the government of Tonga and government of New Zealand are willing to contribute to the position.”
“I would be grateful for your urgent confirmation that the government is in agreement with the draft terms so that this can be submitted to His Majesty in Privy Council for approval.”
Commissioner versus the minister
Mr. Caldwell was at the centre of a clash between the Privy Council’s Appointment Panel and the Cabinet after the current Minister of Police Mateni Tapueluelu submitted that the Panel not extend the commissioner’s contract.
The Panel has already indicated it would recommend the king approve Mr Caldwell’s appointment.
As Kaniva News reported, the Privy Council has given Mr Caldwell seven days to respond.
Hon. Tapueluelu has made a number of accusations against the Police Commissioner including alleging his decision making was swayed by a number of corrupt senior Tongan officials in his office.
The former Minister of His Majesty’s Armed Forces Lord Ma’afu told Kakalu ‘o Tonga newspaper Mr. Caldwell had written to Cabinet and apologised for the signing of a permit by the Deputy Commissioner for the Armed Forces to import 400,000 ammunition after the king dissolved Parliament last year.
Lord Ma’afu claimed the Commissioner said it was a ‘fehalaaki’ (mistake.)
Hon. Tapueluelu claimed the signing was unlawful and the Deputy Commissioner had no power to sign such letter.
Lord Ma’afu said Mr. Caldwell did the right thing by apologising when his office made a mistake.
Lord Ma’afu said he believed the gist of the problem was that Hon. Tapueluelu was unable to sit down together with his Commissioner of Police and talk about why he was not satisfied with his work.
The main points
- A letter from the Privy Council’s Appointment Panel in 2015 to former Minister of Police Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa contained a request to Cabinet to confirm what it had agreed with New Zealand on the Police Commissioner’s pay.
- The letter, which was written by former clerk of the Panel, Rosamond C. Bing, was intended to ask the government to confirm it agreed with a draft contract of the current police commissioner Steve Caldwell.
- Fonua wanted to make sure the two governments reached a conclusion on the pay before the Panel recommended Mr. Caldwell’s appointment to the king.
For more information
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