The Court of Appeal in Tonga has dismissed the Public Service Commission’s (PSC) appeal against former Ministry of Tourism senior official Mary Magdalena Tafa Fifita.
The court ordered the PSC to cover all of Fifita’s legal costs from both the Supreme Court and appeal proceedings, plus associated disbursements as determined by the Registrar.
Fifita, who held senior roles in the ministry for years, was dismissed in January 2024 following allegations of conflict of interest involving her daughter’s company, Matapa Services, which was contracted for government training programs.
The case began when Siosaia Pahulu, a training coordinator at the Ministry of Tourism, filed a complaint with the PSC on 11 April 2023.
He alleged that Fifita, then serving as Deputy CEO, had improperly awarded $55,300 in contracts to Matapa Services.
Pahulu’s complaint prompted an internal investigation by the Ministry of Tourism and meetings with the PSC, which ultimately decided to bring charges and refer the case to the police.
The Court of Appeal upheld Justice Cooper’s earlier ruling that Fifita’s dismissal was unlawful, citing multiple procedural failures in the PSC’s investigation.
In that ruling, it was found that no proper disclosure. Fifita was never given the complaint against her or a chance to respond.
The investigator, the Ministry of Tourism’s CEO, Mr Viliami Takau, failed to consider testimony from a witness who confirmed Fifita had disclosed her conflict of interest.
The investigator uncritically adopted an auditor’s report without independent scrutiny, the court document said.
It said Mr Takau breached regulations by directly recommending disciplinary action.
The Appeal judges ruled the PSC’s process was “incomplete and unfair”, violating statutory requirements.
