Public Enterprises Minister Piveni Piukala has publicly alleged that a $14 million loan program, designed to empower low-income earners such as fishermen and weavers, failed to achieve its intended purpose.
The minister’s disclosure emerges amid a comprehensive government-wide review targeting all ministries, departments, and state boards.
Mr Piukala said in Tongan that the Tonga Development Bank (TDB) funds were allegedly “exhausted early after being mostly borrowed by elites” instead of aiding the poor, leaving many legitimate applicants empty-handed.
Piukala cited cases where struggling families sought loans for basic needs, such as school fees, only to be told by the TDB that no money was available.
However, TDB chief executive Emeline Tuita disputed the findings, calling them misleading and untrue.
They could also “mislead the public and TDB customers”, Tuita told Kaniva News in Tongan.
We also requested that she provide us with the bank’s loan policy, but she did not respond.
The allegations come at a challenging time for the state-funded TDB, which was facing a court battle and confronting a wave of misinformation on social media that it claims is damaging its public image.
Vote of no confidence revelations
The government findings follow a motion of no confidence last year, which alleged that the TDB had violated the established loan limits for clients.
The vote of no confidence against former Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku also claimed that the bank’s financial status remains uncertain due to the inability of companies with government-guaranteed loans to fulfil their repayment obligations.
The former Hu’akavameiliku administration was accused of legal violations due to its failure to present evidence of the loan guarantee to the House. It was also accused of failing to prevent the two banks, TDB and Tonga National Reserve Bank (TNRB), from entering into a legal dispute, which was awaiting a court decision.
In his response, Hon Hu‘akavameiliku said in Tongan: “It is important to note that the two banks operate as separate legal entities that function independently from government decision-making processes”.
He further said that the court would issue its final ruling on the matter, noting that this falls entirely within the judiciary’s authority—a realm beyond the government’s control.
