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Pulu says unless Lavulavu was stopped by Cabinet secretary or PM, he had a right to speak 

By
Kalino Latu
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Former MP and Cabinet Minister ‘Isileli Pulu has defended ‘Etuate Lavulavu and asked what was wrong with the disgraced former MP speaking on behalf of the government.

Disgraced ‘Etuate Lavulavu and ‘Isileli Pulu

Pulu was responding to a story we published last month under the heading ‘Lavulavu will not say who authorised him to speak regularly and publicly on behalf of Prime Minister Tuʻiʻonetoa’s government.’

Pulu also asked what law Lavulavu breached.

At the time, we contacted Lavulavu, but he told us his answers could be found in interviews with FM 88.9 or Tonga Broadcasting Commission.

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Local people asked what his position in government was.

Last month in Vava’u, Lavulavu spoke almost everywhere the Prime Minister and his government delegates went to promote the Prime Minister’s taxpayer-funded fasting and prayer service to combat Covid-19.

During a celebration in Tu’anekivale, Vava’u  last week, Lavulavu introduced a donation and a Tongan entertainment item sponsored by Prime Minister Pōhiva Tuʻiʻonetoa, his family and members of his delegation.

He was making jokes about the Prime Minister during his introduction which many observers felt showed how confident and close he was to  Hon. Tuʻiʻonetoa. They felt Lavulavu could  say anything he wanted in front of the Prime Minister and the Cabinet Ministers.

The Chief Secretary General and some of the Cabinet Ministers, including senior staff of the Prime Minister’s Office were there. Critics asked why a former Minister, who was barred from Parliament after being found guilty of bribery, was allowed to speak at an important event that was shown on Facebook as well as being broadcast.

Kaniva News contacted Pulu and asked whether he did not believe we had the right to publish a story which raised questions about why Lavulavu spoke on behalf of the Prime Minister when he was not a Cabinet member or civil servant.

Pulu agreed that Kaniva News had the right  to ask such question about Lavulavu.

However, he said he was concerned that the story appeared to accuse Lavulavu of wrongdoing when he spoke at government ceremonies.

“The question is whether Lavulavu was repeatedly asked to stop speaking and disobeyed the request,” Pulu said.

“If he was not stopped by the Chief Secretary and the PM it was clear they were willing to allow him to speak.”

The Prime Minister told the media his People’s Party, of which Lavulavu was Deputy Chair, was affiliated with the Cabinet.

He said Lavulavu was free to speak on behalf of the government.

Kaniva News has not accused Lavulavu of breaking any law.

Like any citizen, Lavulau can speak anytime to support the Prime Minister and Cabinet. He operated a local Tongan newspaper Kalonikali and the broadcasting radio station 88.9 FM. These media were propagandist and Lavulavu used them to attack the government’s critics and support PM Tu’i’onetoa and the Cabinet.

However, as we have reported, people have  been concerned when Lavulavu appeared to speak on behalf of  the Prime Minister and the government at events attended by the Prime Minister, his Cabinet Ministers and Chief Secretary. One example was the event at Tu’anekivale, Vava’u last month.

A number of citizens have been concerned that an unelected individual should not appear to act as if he is a herald or official spokesman for the Prime Minister of the government.

Such concerns are clearly a matter of public interest and we have reported them as such.

The Prime Minister’s statement appears to make it clear that he is happy for Lavulavu to speak for the government.

That is of course his right, but it raises an issue we dealt with last night, which is the nature of public perception.

Voters want to see open, honest and fair government. They also want to see that the government and the people around it abide by the highest standards.

With a vote of no confidence looming and an election ahead, Prime Minister  Tuʻiʻonetoa must be concerned about how taxpayers, voters and the ordinary person in the street perceive his government’s  behaviour.

The people may become very concerned if the government appears to be giving free reign to controversial figures or those with convictions.

It is a matter of public record that Lavulavu has been before the courts several times over the years. He lost his Parliamentary seat and Cabinet position in 2016 after being found guilty of committing bribery.

Lavulavu is currently involved in legal dispute over leased land, in which he is accused of forging a landlord’s signature in Vava’u.

He is also awaiting a court hearing after he and his wife ‘Akosita Lavulavu, the Minister of Tourism, were charged with knowingly dealing with forged documents and obtaining credit by false pretences, after irregularities in an audit of the ‘Unuaki ‘o Tonga Royal Institute in 2016.

In a case in 2000, Lavulavu was sued by the Late Prince Tu’ipelehake for damages and unlawful cultivation of his land. In his summing up of the trial, Lord Chief Justice Ward said Lavulavu “was willing to say almost anything that seemed to suit the moment with a repeated disregard for the truth.”

Huge flooding in Vava‘u last week underlines Islanders’ concerns about state of infrastructure 

By
Kalino Latu
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Neiafu Town officer Vāvā Lapota  said the media should continue to expose damage caused by natural disasters and poor infrastructure in Vava’u.

A burst of heavy rain caused flooding in Vava’u, damaging roads and causing traffic chaos. Photos/Vāvā Lapota

He said Vava’u was steep and it only took a day of heavy rain for damage to occur.

The flooding last week worsened the damage caused by cyclone Zasu last month to the new roads built by the government under the Prime Minister’s multi-million road project.

The floods were caused by poor or no drainage at all, he said. Houses in Neiafu were damaged and some vehicles had to avoid certain roads because they were overwhelmed with water.

He said only one of two drainage systems in Neiafu were working, with the others blocked by vegetation.

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Lapota said the drains were built about 10 years ago, but did not work properly.

He said there would have been no flooding if they had been built and maintained properly.

He said there was about a kilometre-long stretch of low-lying land that always flooded after heavy rain. If there was drainage  the water could be drained into the Vaipua sea.

complaining

Lapota said he complained to an officer at the Ministry of Infrastructure’s office in Vava’u about the problems. He said the officer told him the problems occurred because people did not build the foundations of their houses high enough so flooding was not be a problem.

“I told him that was wrong,” Lapota said.

“If they built drainage it could resolve the problem. Not only that, but these houses were built when the roads were low. But since they repeatedly filled in the roads with layers of rocks to cover potholes it caused more problems,’ Lapota said.

Last week’s flooding came after heavy rain has caused flooding on many homes in Neiafu in November 2020.

The town officer described it as the worst flooding since the last 10 years.

MOI staff

Lapota said locals were concerned that those in the MOI office in Vava’u may not have enough experience or qualifications to do their job.

He said the issue was raised with Prime Minister Tu’i’onetoa when he first visited Vava’u to hear about their urgent needs early last year.  He said  former Parliamentary candidate Viliami Pasikala asked Hon. Tu’i’onetoa to send a civil engineer from Tongatapu to work on Vava’u’s infrastructure including the roads.

Pasikala said the government infrastructure in Vava’u built in the past was still standing because it was built by qualified civil engineers.

During that meeting, Former Director of the Ministry of Agriculture Haniteli Fa’anunu told the Prime Minister the level of government senior staff at Vava’u should be upgraded from officers in charge (OIC) and additional people should be employed at deputy levels.

He said developments in Vava’u were stalled and it was a pity to see it reflected in what he described as the worrying status of the tourism industry and the labour and commerce sectors.

He told the Prime Minster to bring better educated and young government staff to Vava’u.

The Prime Minister always said the reasons he visited the outer islands and met people was to give him an opportunity to see the problems they encountered.

He gave an example by saying that when he stepped down from the big boat into a small boat to travel to an island, coupled with being wet in the sea, he felt and experienced the problems the islanders faced from time to time.

Infrastructure Minister Akosita Lavulavu has been contacted for comment.

Editorial: PM’s vow to treat ‘two as one’ under spotlight as January vote of no confidence that could bring down Tu’i’onetoa government nears

By
Kalino Latu
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Kaniva Editorial

With only 12 days to go before the vote of no confidence in the Tu’i’onetoa government, politicians on both sides of the house will be weighing up the administration’s record since it came to office.

PM Pōhiva Tu’i’onetoa. Photo/Kalino Lātū (Kaniva News)

A great deal of concern has focused on accusations of nepotism and favouritism surrounding the awarding of lucrative roading contracts and the costs of the Prime Minister’s prayer and fasting tours.

These are indeed serious matters of concern that highlight what critics will see as the failure of the government’s promise to treat two as one, but there are also other issues that are cause for concern.

There have been attempts to control what Parliamentarians say in the House, efforts to limit debate and a tendency to over-sensitivity to criticism.

It has also shown little regard for the democratic legacy of former Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pōhiva, reversing the work of placing more control in the hands of Parliament.

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The new government’s reign began in controversy after Hon. Tu’i’onetoa abandoned the Democrats and sided with the nobles and opposition members.

The government shelved the six bills the Pōhiva government had tried to pass, claiming his government did not have enough time to do it.

The Prime Minister told Kaniva news last year that the king, the nobles and the people must be “in unity,” implying that he did not want any dissent or change.

In an interview with this news service, Hon. Tu’i’onetoa argued that his government would treat people with different views the same way, citing the Tongan proverb “Lau e ua ko e taha” – “Counting two as one.”

Critics would argue that the government has acted very differently to its promise.

Kaniva News believes the government has shown wise leadership in its handling of the Covid-19 crisis, listening to scientific advice, sealing the borders and restricting the number of repatriation flights so the kingdom’s facilities are not overwhelmed.

Nevertheless, the country is hurting economically, with the case of water melon growers only the latest crisis. When so many people are feeling financial pain, many will argue that it was utterly thoughtless for the government to go swanning around the islands, ostensibly to promote prayer and fasting as a barrier to Covid-19, while apparently living off the fat of the land and collecting gifts, all at taxpayers’ expense.

Critics will say this does not show the government treating two as one. They will look at this behaviour and ask whether the government expects ordinary people to grant them every wish while acting as if they were great lords from some far distant time in Tonga’s history.

And as we have asked before, if all that food was being eaten, who in the government was fasting?

For its critics, the most glaring example of the failure of the treating two as one policy is the awarding of the roading contracts.

The contracts are at the centre of the vote of no confidence, which will take place when Parliament resumes.

Opposition Leader Sēmisi Sika accused the Tu’i’onetoa government of designing the tendering process for its roading project so the contracts would be given to three of its friends.

All the tenders have been awarded to companies with links of varying strength to the government, a conflict of interest that would raise red flags in Australia and New Zealand.

However, the Prime Minister has argued that the roadworks are a priority for the people and that the deals his government has arranged are financially beneficial. He also argued that the government was working for everybody.

“For whom are these roads being built?” Hon. Tu’i’onetoa asked.

“For the elderly of the country. For the children of the country. The growers of the country. Men and women. Yes for everyone in the country.”

Without contrary evidence, we must accept that Prime Minister Tu’i’onetoa is sincere in his beliefs about who would benefit from the roads. He may be equally sincere in believing that his cruises around the islands leading prayer meetings and fasting have helped keep the pandemic at bay.

However, it seems the Prime Minister has not yet learned that governments must not just believe they are doing the right thing. They must make sure they are seen to be doing the right thing every day they are in office. They must avoid behaviour that makes it look as if they favour their friends over everybody else or that makes them look as if they think they are better than other people. Good, open, fair government must not just be done; it must be seen to be done.

Gov’t says it cannot prioritise RSE workers on flights home as New Zealand lays down new rules on 2021 seasonal worker intake

By
Kalino Latu
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The Tongan government had to give a fair chance for all Tongans stranded overseas to return to Tonga, CEO Dr Fotu Fisi’iahi of the Ministry of Internal Affairs told Kaniva News today.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs CEO Dr Fotu Fisi’iahi. Photo/Facebook

About 7000 people became stuck overseas because of the border closures.

Dr Fisi’iahi said the government could not just prioritise RSE workers.

He said the number of rooms in the quarantine facilities and the number of front line workers at the isolation facilities were also a significant issue.

The only available quarantine facilities in Tonga were the Tanoa Hotel, Makeke and the Taliai camp.

The New Zealand government wants all RSE workers repatriated so Tonga can be allocated a new share of the 2000 employees who were expected to arrive here in New Zealand next month from the Pacific. This meant Tonga missed out on the opportunity.

Tonga is the only Pacific nation with RSE workers left in New Zealand. All other countries taking part in the RSE scheme, including Samoa, Solomon and Vanuatu have flown all their workers home.

More than 400 Tongan RSE workers have been repatriated back home leaving 1475 employees to be repatriated. Most of them continued to work in New Zealand and many wanted to return to Tonga.

Dr Fisi’iahi said Tonga was expected to meet other conditions before it was allocated a share of the 2000 workers expected to arrive in Auckland in January.

RSE workers who had been repatriated to Tonga included those who had family issues, those who were very tired and wanted to have a rest and those whose employers or contractors wanted them to leave as soon as possible because of bad behaviour, he said.

This meant that even though these people had working experiences, it was up to the farmers to decide whether they were selected to return to New Zealand.

“The selection of the new 2000 RSE to come to New Zealand in January 2021 has to be done by the farmers and their associations,” Dr Fisi’iahi said.

“The New Zealand government is not involved in that selection process. The associations were not concerned about Tonga being left out because we still have a lot of workers in New Zealand who are available to work.”

RSE rules

According to Immigration New Zealand, only workers who have completed at least one season in New Zealand will be eligible for employment.

The horticulture and viticulture industries consulted with employers to provide INZ a list of nominated workers to recruit from Pacific countries.

Eligible employers will be required to make special commitments including managed isolation and quarantine requirements.

Visas of RSE workers expiring between 18 August and 31 December 2020 have been extended by six months.

Those who wish to continue to work in New Zealand for the same purpose after these additional six months can apply to stay longer.

All RSE scheme workers granted a flexible visa will be able to re-enter the scheme and work again for a Recognised Seasonal Employer with 30 hours per week average pay.

Cyclone takes roof off government building; photo of damage stirs controversy, complaints

By
Kalino Latu
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Category One Cyclone Zazu was strong enough to rip off the rooftop of this government evacuation building in Leimātu’a in Vava‘u. Photo. ‘Etimoni Vete (Facebook)

Cyclone Zazu has ripped off the rooftop of a government evacuation building in Leimātu’a in Vava‘u.

The damage, which occurred on December 14, has triggered huge debate online and a town officer has been threatened with court action.

The damage went unnoticed until a photo surfaced yesterday on Facebook.

The photo was posted by Neiafu Town Officer Vāvā Lapota, who said it was important for the building of the centre to make sure it could withstand a category five tropical cyclone.

The photo was taken by Leimātu’a Town Officer Etimoni Vete. Vete told Kaniva News he took the photo as part of his report to the Ministry of Disaster Management (MEIDECC) of the damage caused by Zazu.

He uploaded the photo, together with several other pictures of damage caused by Cyclone Zazu, to his Facebook page on December 15. He said at the time he did not allow his people to make comment under the photos.

MEIDECC Minister Poasi Tei told Kaniva News the building was left unfinished before Zazu struck.

The Minister of Infrastructure has been contacted for comment.

Tropical Cyclone Zazu was reported to be a category one system with winds gusting up to 120 kilometre an hour.

On December 15 at noon TVNZ reported that Zazu had passed by the islands of Vava’u bringing destructive storm force winds, thunderstorms and high seas.

Some people have questioned the structural soundness of the building before the cyclone struck.

Government supporters blasted Lapota, saying he politicised the damage and shared the photo online to denigrate the government.

Lapota denied this and said it was part of his job to let the people knew what had happened in the community and he did this from time to time without being selective.

Leimātu’a local George Paongo said in Tongan it was good to report the damage so people knew about how their taxes were being used.

“Mea lelei ohake ketau ilo kihe gaahi maumau oku hoko ki heetau tukuhau koe natula fou kihe hufaga iha afaa ka koeni e uluaki haea ia,” he said.

Critics also referred to the damages caused by Zazu to the government’s newly constructed road under the Prime Minister’s multi-million road project.

As Kaniva News reported last week, some new roads were overwhelmed by flooding and some roads were closed  because of the damage.

Lapota told Kaniva News he was contacted by a person who said his name was Angus Naupoto and claimed to have built the Leimātu’a evacuation centre. He accused Lapota of lying to the public by saying that the evacuation centre was damaged by Cyclone Yasa. Naupoto told Lapota to remove the photo or he would sue him. Lapota told Naupoto he stood by his post. The Town Officer told Naupoto to go ahead and sue him and said he would never remove the photo.

Men arrested in Vava‘u after call to fireworks being set off on Sunday

By
Sisi Latu
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Three Chinese men were arrested after Police responded to reports of fireworks being set off in ‘Alo’italau yesterday Sunday 27.

Gary L Jones/Shutterstock

Initial indications from the scene are that the suspects were allegedly drunk when the fireworks being let off, Neiafu Town Officer Vāvā Lapota told Kaniva News. 

The accused could also face charges of breaching Tonga’s Sunday Law taboo ban.

Police could not be reached for comment.

Name of Grace Millane’s killer made public, other sex attack convictions revealed

By
Kaniva Staff
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This story was originally appeared on TVNZ and is republished with permission 

The name of the Auckland man who murdered British backpacker Grace Millane can finally be revealed as Jesse Shane Kempson.

It can now be revealed that Jesse Shane Kempson also sexually violated two other women he met on Tinder. Source: 1 NEWS

Earlier this year the 28-year-old was sentenced to life in jail with a minimum non-parole period of 17 years, after strangling Millane to death the night before her 22nd birthday.

Until now, his identity’s been suppressed, partially due to further trials he was facing involving sex charges against two other women he met on Tinder.

1 NEWS
Grace Millane Source: 1 NEWS

We can now report that Kempson has been found guilty on all of those charges, including sexually abusing, physically assaulting and threatening to kill a former girlfriend.

In October she told the High Court: “Whenever he got angry, and something inside of him snapped, he would go straight to the kitchen, get one of those knives, and hold it to my throat.”

The woman first went to police in April 2017, seeking a protection order against Kempson.

Police kept her complaint on file and contacted her when Millane went missing 20 months later.

Last month she told the court, “I didn’t want to bring up my past again, but I also wanted the truth to be out about who Jesse is and the pattern of behaviour and how this whole thing could have been avoided. It really could have.

“I was Grace’s voice and I will be Grace’s voice,” she said.

In a separate trial Kempson was found guilty of raping a woman on their first and only date.

She told the court last month: “I was just frozen and I let him do what he needed to do so I could try and go to sleep or go home as soon as possible.”

An Official Information Act request by 1 NEWS shows Kempson has cost the taxpayer close to half a million dollars in legal aid costs for his three cases.

More than $400,000 of that is from his murder case.

Appeals are ongoing so the overall cost is not final.

It’s now been more than two years since Kempson was arrested for Millane’s murder.

Law expert Chris Gallavin said, “This is an interesting case for name suppression because normally you have name suppression in the context of protecting the identity of the victims or the family members of the perpetrator… in this circumstance, it’s actually name suppression to protect the fair trial rights of the accused”.

“At the time that the Grace Millane trial occurred, he had name suppression because they needed to protect his anonymity for the fair trial rights for the charges that were yet to come.”

However, even when Kempson elected to be tried by judge alone in his other cases, the name suppression remained.

Gallavin said, that was “because of the possibility the Millane charges might be appealed… there might have been a new trial and if a new trial a new jury would need to be pulled from the public and then the court was aware they didn’t want members of the public knowing he was to face what was quite simply a raft of charges”.

Questions are now being asked about whether a jury should be allowed to know.

Gallavin said, “It might be time to relook at that”.

Kempson’s been sentenced to 11 years in prison for his other convictions, but that will be served concurrently with his penalty for murder.

The killer’s name suppression was set to lapse last Friday, when the Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against his murder conviction and sentence.

However, the Supreme Court issued an order for interim name suppression after a last minute notice of appeal from his lawyer.

The Supreme Court today has allowed his name to be finally made public.

Auckland-based contractor considering legal action against Tongan government over claims it failed to pay equipment shipping costs

By
Kalino Latu
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Sione Foaki Fifita (Left) and Finance Minister Tēvita Lavemaau

A New Zealand-based Tongan company is considering suing the Tu’i’onetoa government after it allegedly refused to pay cargo freight fees.

Tripac International Ltd which is also known as Friendly Islands Freight Ltd claims the government owes it more than TP$100,000 after it shipped heavy machinery from New Zealand to Tonga.

The equipment belongs to owner New Zealand-based Tongan Sione Foaki Fifita and his company Pacific Works and Civil Contractor.

Tripac held the equipment at its facility at the Queen Salote wharf when it arrived in Tonga because Mr Fifita wouldn’t pay for the freight.

It has been claimed the Minister of Finance contacted Tripac and asked the company to release the equipment with a guarantee the government would pay it afterward.

Tripac director Angina Finau told Kaniva News yesterday the government had not paid the money.  

However, he declined to make further comment, saying he did not want the issue to be reported in media. 

He said he was surprised when he heard the dispute had reached media.

Minister of Finance Tevita Lavemaau and Prime Minister Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa have been contacted for comment. Mr Fifita could not be reached for comment. 

Dispute

The move by Tripac came after critics and the government clashed in March after a letter purporting to offer government projects in Ha’apai’s main island of Lifuka to Mr Fifita surfaced.

The letter, which appeared to use the government coat of arm and the signature of the Minister of Finance Lavemaau, was dated March 12 2020.

Mr Fifita shared the letter online. Critics quickly re-posted it and accused the government of supporting Mr Fifita for the job while the tender process appeared to be still in progress.

Critics accused the Prime Minister of offering the bid to Mr Fifita, who lived in New Zealand, while there was a Tongan contractor in Tonga which could do the work.

They also blamed the Prime Minister for giving the bid to Mr Fifita because they came from the same village of Talafo’ou in Tongatapu.

“This is unfair to those businesses who are established in Tonga and have proven themselves capable to the job,” a critic said on Facebook.

Denial

The government denied the accusation at the time, saying it had not awarded the tender to Mr Fifita. It said Fifita had asked for the letter to facilitate his attempts in New Zealand to buy equipment and machinery if he won the bid for the Ha’apai projects.

The government said the same letter was given to other bidders for the same reasons.

The letter to Mr Fifita said: “I wish to inform you herein that the projects in the Ha’apai Island District are in the pipelines for completion of documentation to award to your company the total costs of which is Tongan pa’anga of $4.7 million.” The letter said the project was to upgrade the Foa causeway and Holopeka Road Connection and upgrade the wharf and seawall foreshore at the palace.

A statement apparently issued by the Minister of Finance at the time said all the bids for the projects had to be processed through the government’s legal procurement process.

The government accused Mr Fifita at the time of sharing the letter to Facebook.

Poor road work blamed for dramatic damage to Vava‘u roads as Cyclone Zazu hammers island

By
Kalino Latu
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Officials and locals in Vava’u have blamed poor construction for the level of damage caused to newly constructed roads by Cyclone Zazu last week.

A truck belonging to the Inter Pacific company was seen getting bogged on a newly constructed road in Ta’anea. Photo/Vāvā Lapota

The cyclone caused widespread erosion and flooding with winds gusting up to 120 kilometre an hour.

Flooding in Ta’anea overwhelmed some of the roads and washed away many of the rocks that have been used to construct them.

Some roads have been closed because vehicles cannot use them because of the damage.

Neiafu Town Officer Vāvā Lapota told Kaniva News the damage was huge.

He said Vava’u main island was mostly steep, which made it easy for rain to erode the roads because they were not sealed.

He said a heavy truck belonging to one of the rock suppliers – Inter Pacific Ltd, which is owned by ‘Etuate Lavulavu – was seen getting bogged on a newly constructed road in Ta’anea.

Some of the roads in Vava’u constructed under the Prime Minister’s multimillion roading project. Photos/Supplied

Lapota said another heavy truck from Inter Pacific became bogged in one of the roads in ‘Utulei after the cyclone and a loader was sent to pull it out.

Locals claimed there was no proper road drainage  and some of the roads did not appear to contain enough layers of rocks to withstand heavy vehicles.

They said roads constructed with only rock as a top layer would be unusable.

People commenting on photos of the Ta’anea damages uploaded to Facebook last week said this was a waste of money.

Kaniva News has asked the Minister of Infrastructure, ‘Akosita Lavulavu, for comment.

We have asked Hon. Lavulavu to tell us how the road engineering plan was designed to cope with Vava’u’s steep hills and vulnerability to tropical cyclones. We also asked her to tell us how much will it cost for the government to rebuild or repair the road damage.

The Prime Minister’s New Road Construction project has been criticised for being designed to benefit Cabinet members and the Prime Minister’s People’s Party members.

It was announced to have cost taxpayers TP$300million. Hon. Tu’i’onetoa said the government had set the price at TP$70 for each truck load.

Opposition Leader Sēmisi Sika said the way money was allocated to the project would cause an economic disarray to the whole country.

Early this year, photos uploaded to Facebook by ‘Eua residents showed huge damage to the newly constructed roads after a storm struck the island.

Family ‘devastated’ after Kotu pastor’s body found

By
Sisi Latu
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Searchers have found the body of Pastor Silakivai ‘Ahoafi, who had been missing for nearly a day at sea.

Rev Silakivai with his sons. Photo/Facebook

Photos and video clips shared to Facebook appeared to show the family were devastated by the news.

The 49-year-old from Ha’avakatolo was serving the Free Wesleyan Church of Kofu island.

Police said Rev ‘Ahoafi had “drowned” while fishing at sea.

A jury has confirmed his cause of death, Police said.

As Kaniva News reported yesterday, Rev ‘Ahoafi went for a fishing trip with one of his sons before the incident happened.

Meanwhile, tributes are flowing for the “funny, free-spirited” pastor since yesterday.

Friends and family have shared their memories of him online.

“You always kept your listeners awake and laughing while delivering your sermons,” one person said on Facebook.

Another described him as a “special person” who always shared his fish with his people on his way from the sea.

Video clips appear to show his wife Tupou was overwhelmed with emotions and understandably devastated as the body of her husband was being carried by the searchers in what appeared to be a mat from the water.

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