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US Police seek Vaitai who allegedly stabbed father, sister during dispute

By
Kaniva Staff
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SANDY, Utah (ABC4 News) – Police are looking for a man accused of assaulting his father and juvenile sister during an argument at a home in Sandy on Friday night.

Sgt. Jason Nielsen of Sandy City Police said 26-year-old Sione Vaitai was involved in a dispute near 10200 S. Mount View Dr. around 10:15 p.m.

Sometime during the argument, Vaitai obtained a large knife and stabbed his father and the sister.

When police arrived, Vaitai had already left the residence.

Both the father and the sister were transported in critical condition to local hospitals.

Vaitai is believe to be driving a white 2009 Chevrolet Silverado with license plate X384BF.

The truck has extended side walls built out of wood in the bed of the truck.

Vaitai is described as a Polynesian male, 6′ 0” tall, weighs 300 pounds and has dark hair. He is believed to be armed and dangerous.

If you locate Vaitai, please call 911.

Police continue to investigate the incident, there are no other details being released at this time.

Authorities await coroner’s report after man died of suspicious injuries

By
Kaniva Staff
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The Tongan authorities are awaiting results of an autopsy on the body of a 74-year-old Longolongo man who died in Vaiola hospital shortly after he was admitted with suspicious injuries.

The man was taken by an ambulance and arrived at the emergency department at 9.30pm. He died two hours later on May 10, Medical Superintendent Dr Lisiate ‘Ulufonua said.

“It was a coroner’s case which I have yet to receive the report”, he said.

Tonga Police said today they also await the report.

As Kaniva News reported last week it was believed the deceased inflicted the injuries on himself.

His family called the hospital emergency service after they found him with severe injuries.

Pohiva says he was “astonished” by World Bank report on Games costs

By
Kalino Latu and Philip Cass
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Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva said this afternoon he would have cancelled hosting the Pacific Games in 2019 if he had  been aware of the World Bank report earlier.

As Kaniva News reported earlier today, the government has decided Tonga will not host the Games after Hon. Pohiva saw the report for the first time.

He said it appeared no feasibility studies were carried out before the previous government agreed to host the Pacific Games in 2019.

Speaking to Kaniva News at Atalanga this afternoon, the Prime Minister said he was “astonished” by the contents of the report.

Hon. Pohiva said he did not know when the report arrived in Tonga. It was sent to the Ministry of Finance and stayed there until last week when he saw it.

Pohiva said he had no doubt why former Finance Minister Lisiate ʻAkolo criticised the former government for bringing the Games to Tonga because it would ruin the country economically.

Pohiva said he believed ʻAkolo got a copy of the report.

Akolo was finally sacked because of his stance on the Games.

World Bank report

According to the World Bank report, which Hon. Pohiva provided to Kaniva News, the Games would cost US$70 million (TP$ 159,873,183/NZ$101,807,152).

The Bank said this would use up 60 percent of annual government revenue and represent 12% of gross domestic product.

In contrast, the London Olympics were estimated to have cost about 0.6 percent of the UK’s GDP and 1.5 percent of annual Government revenue.

“Additional public expenditure of USD$70 million is very difficult to finance or justify  given Tonga’s  current challenging fiscal and economic position,” the report said.

Government expenditure would have to be cut by up to a third to balance the budget.

Sporting events could lead to increased visitor numbers, which could contribute to economic growth, but the extent of economic growth was heavily dependent on the existing state of the economy.

“Most international studies have found that impact on employment and incomes  is  small  and the gains in government revenue much less  that the original expenditure, leaving fiscal conditions worse. “

The report said that visitors for the event might simply displace existing tourists, especially if capacity was limited.

Disruptions caused by sporting events could lead to economic losses.

Visitors might allocate a large proportion of their spending to imported goods, reducing any benefit to local suppliers.

This was likely to occur in Tonga, where many products were imported.

Foreign-owned tourism and hospitality businesses might repatriate profits, rather than re-injecting them into the local economy.

International evidence shows that specialized investments, such as stadia and aquatic centres, were poor investments, the report said.

They did not generate sufficient return to justify their existence during the  short period of events.

“Many countries, including in the Pacific, have underutilised sporting facilities left over from previous events which rapidly deteriorate with under-use and  lack of funding for  maintenance,”  the report said.

The main points

  • Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva said this afternoon he would have cancelled hosting the Pacific Games in 2019 if he had been aware of the World Bank report earlier.
  • As Kaniva News reported earlier today, the government has decided Tonga will not host the Games after Hon. Pohiva saw the report for the first time.
  • He said it appeared no feasibility studies were carried out before the previous government agreed to host the Pacific Games in 2019.
  • According to the World Bank report, which Hon. Pohiva provided to Kaniva News, the Games would cost US$70 million.

For more information

Tonga will not host 2019 Pacific Games; PM cites World Bank advice on costs

Tonga will not host 2019 Pacific Games; PM cites World Bank advice on costs

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tonga will not host 2019 Pacific games.

A spokesman for the Tongan Cabinet told Kaniva News this morning Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva had decided to save the country from a costly mistake.

The spokesman said Hon. Pohiva was made aware last week of a World Bank report which said the kingdom would face economic difficulties if it hosted the Games.

The government’s decision comes just weeks after the Chinese government agreed to pay more than TP$57 million for new sporting facilities.

The spokesman said Tonga would still continue renovations and maintenance of sporting facilities to prepare its athletes for the Games.

This included the Teufaiva national stadium, Tonga High School complex, Atele Indoor Stadium and the golf course.

The spokesperson said Cabinet considered the fact that Tonga had to follow the requirements for the upkeep of the sporting facilities after the Games.

“It is required the government must have an annual budget of 12 percent of the total cost of the expenses used for the construction of the facilities for their maintenance and repairs every year after 2019,” the spokesperson said.

“We cannot afford that large amount of money and we do not have the number of people and sport events to use these facilities from time to time to generate funds for the upkeep.”

Foreign funding

It is not clear what effect the government’s decision will have on the tens of millions of dollars of foreign funding earmarked for the games.

The Chinese government has agreed to pay for a $US24.8 million (TP$57,576,000/NZ$36,360,000) sports complex at Tonga High School for the 2019 Games.

The sports complex preparatory works are scheduled for August 2017, with construction expected to start in October 2017 and be completed by May 2019.

Other works confirmed for the Games include the upgrade of the Teufaiva Stadium, funded through a development initiative by the New Zealand Government.

Papua New Guinea had also offered financial support for the games.

Bitter

The government’s decision follows weeks of often bitter wrangling between the Prime Minister, Games organising committee CEO Lord Sevele and the Pacific Games Council.

Last year the Prime Minister sent a letter to Council president Vidya Lakhan saying Tonga was prepared to withdraw all funding and support for the games if an impasse involving him and Lord Sevele was not resolved.

In October last year the Council said it expected Tonga to remain as host of the 2019 Pacific Games after Hon. Pohiva told parliament he doubted Tonga would be ready in time.

The main points

  • Tonga will not host next year’s Pacific games.
  • A spokesman for the Tongan Cabinet told Kaniva News this morning Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva had decided to save the country from a costly mistake.
  • The spokesman said Hon. Pohiva was made aware last week of a World Bank report which said the kingdom would face economic difficulties if it hosted the Games.
  • The decision comes just weeks after the Chinese government agreed to pay for a $US24.8 million sports complex at Tonga High School.

For more information

China to fund sports complex in Tonga for Pacific Games

Pacific Games Council expects Tonga to remain as host

Sisters jailed for neglecting mother after she was found decaying in her bed

By
Kaniva Staff
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Two Tongan sisters were sentenced Friday to 23 days in jail and three years of probation for abusing their elderly mother who died and was found decaying in her bed in 2013, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.

Moala Tatola, 41, and Tafolosa Tatolamahe, 48, have three days of credit for time served and could also have their sentences reduced to misdemeanors if they follow all the conditions of their probation for 18 months, according to prosecutors.

On March 9, 2013, police went to the 1600 block of Third Avenue in San Mateo because someone called to say someone died.

The sisters’ 73-year-old mother Sela Tatola was nude and her lower body was “black due to filth and necrotic tissue,” according to prosecutors. Gangrene was found throughout her body.

Tatola died of pneumonia, prosecutors said. She was diabetic and the sisters told prosecutors that their mother would not go to a doctor.

Mitri Hanania, defense attorney for Tatolamahe, said that the family is Tongan and their culture may have played a part in the case because it is a matriarchal one. He said Friday’s hearing was an emotional one, with his client and her sister showing great remorse.

“It was neglect and the judge saw that, he saw the remorse,” he said.

Hanania said the sisters admitted that they should have done better, and that the outpouring of support from their family and church community attesting to their remorse and commitment to their mother was indicative of that.

District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said he doubted the judge and the probation officer who wrote the pre-sentencing report fully grasped what is involved in elder abuse and wondered if the sisters’ sentence would have been the same if the victim had been a child.

“The duty is the same,” he said. “If you choose to provide the care.”

-San Mateo Daily Journal

Common Kings play to capacity crowd in Auckland gig

By
Philip Cass
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US-based Pacific band The Common Kings drew a capacity crowd at the Powerstation on Mt Eden Rd last night.

The band, whose members are based in Hawai’i and California, draw on Island influences as well as reggae, soul and heavy rock for their music.

They were playing in Auckland as part of a five date promotional tour for their new album Lost in Paradise.

Most of the audience at the gig were Polynesian.

Common Kings last visited New Zealand in early 2016.

Before that they had played as the opening act for Justin Timberlake in 2014.

They recently completed a sell-out tour headlining across America.

The Common King’s drummer, Jerome Taito, is from Tonga and the band played at the king’s coronation celebrations in July 2015.

The other members of the band include guitarist Taumata Grey (Samoa), bassist Ivan Kirimaua (Fiji/Kiribati), drummer Jerome Taito and singer Sasualei “JR King” Maliga (Samoa/Hawai‘i).

The band attributes the richness of their island heritage as a strength that brings both diversity and harmony.

“‘Kings’ is reflective of how we feel about ourselves. We take great pride in our culture and where we come from, but we also try not to take ourselves too seriously,” Kirimaua said in a recent interview.

The main points

  • US-based Pacific band The Common Kings drew a capacity crowd at the Powerstation in Auckland last night.
  • They were playing in Auckland as part of a five date promotional tour for their new album Lost in Paradise.
  • Common Kings last visited New Zealand shores in early 2016.

Tongan nightclub in Auckland back to normal after man shot outside

By
Kalino Latu
-

Activities at the Vava’u Lahi Nightclub in Manukau are back on schedule after a man was seriously injured after a shooting in the parking lot.

Police were called to reports of fighting and a person with a firearm at the nightclub in the early hours of this morning, a statement released by Police to Kaniva and other media this morning said.

When they attended the address on Cavendish Drive at around 2.30am Police found a man who had been shot in the leg.

The man was transported to hospital in a serious condition and Police inquiries into the incident are ongoing.

Finau Valevale, the Tongan owner of the nightclub, told Kaniva News Police closed the bar and told revellers to leave.

He said he was aware of the man’s injury when he fell inside the nightclub.

Valevale said the injured man was outside when the shooting happened.

He said the bar is normally closed at 3am every Sunday morning.

Valevale said this evening it is now open to the public on its normal karaoke singing schedule at 7pm.

Anyone who may have information that could help the investigation is asked to call Manukau Police on 09 261 1300, Police said.

Information can also be shared anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Tongan exports up since 2015, but fisheries still face some challenges

By
Philip Cass
-

Tongan fish exports are up by 73%, Tonga’s Fisheries CEO Dr Tuikolongahau Halafihi said today.

Speaking at the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency conference, Dr Halafihi said exports had risen to 1743 tonnes.

The value of fish exported had risen by 54% to $10 million.

Dr Halafihi attributed the rise to the restructuring of Fisheries into a separate Ministry in 2015.

He said there had been a renewed focus on fisheries resources as a national priority.

The Ministry was increasing the availability of fish on our local markets by requiring all by-catch from licensed foreign vessels to be landed for sale in Tonga.

The Ministry has licensed seven foreign vessels to catch tuna.

“We are also exploring the potential for a deepwater Bluenose line fishery on our sea mounts, with support from New Zealand,” Dr Halahafi said.

The Ministry had begun implementing special management areas (SMAs) for community fisheries.

Only people from within the community are allowed to harvest fish.

The Ministry planned to have more than 30 SMA’s, with a long term target of  100 areas.

Dr Halahafi said the coastal fisheries not covered by either an SMA or a commercial fishery were a significant challenge for Tonga.

He said the Ministry expected to start registering coastal fishermen and their vessels soon.

Dr Halahafi told the conference commercial fisheries and aquaculture in Tonga faced challenges.

“We are enthusiastic and optimistic about aquaculture, but at this stage we are still in the development phase for potential industries including seaweed, pearls, clams, sea cucumber, and milk fish,” he said.

“The sequence of cyclones experienced in Tonga last year damaged years of work in this area, with Cyclone Winston in particular, wiping out both seaweed and milkfish trials.”

The main points

  • Tongan fish exports are up by 73%, Tonga’s Fisheries CEO Dr Tuikolongahau Halafihi said today.
  • Speaking at the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency conference, Dr Halafihi said exports had risen to 1743 tonnes.
  • The value if fish exported had risen by 54% to $10 million.
  • Dr Halafihi attributed the rise to the restructuring of Fisheries into a separate Ministry in 2015.

Tongan student receives top award at California State University

By
Kaniva Staff
-

A Tongan student girl was chosen among 2,100 graduates who were invited to take part in California State University, Northridge’s Honours Convocation on Saturday, May 13.

Angelina Finau was one of the only six individuals to be honoured with special recognition as outstanding graduating students.

They will be awarded with this year’s Wolfson Scholar, the top award given to a graduating senior.

“ It is presented each year in memory of CSUN’s first vice president, Leo Wolfson. Not only must the student have an exceptional academic record, but he or she must also have made significant contributions to CSUN or to the community through co-curricular and extracurricular activities”.

“I’m still processing the fact that I’m getting this amazing honor,” said Finau, 21, of Van Nuys, who will receive her bachelor’s degree in political science in two weeks.

“I can’t believe that this girl whose family comes from these little islands in the Pacific, Tonga, that nobody has ever heard of — I’m nobody special — is getting this award.”

Finau has helped find ways to improve the university’s graduation rates while working in CSUN’s Office of Student Success Innovations; researched water conservation habits of Los Angeles renters; explored ways to improve the performance of students in general education classes; appeared as the lead witch in a production of “Macbeth;” and spent a semester in Washington, D.C., where she got to shake hands with former President Barack Obama as CSUN’s Panetta Congressional Intern.

In addition to all of that, she has maintained a 3.9 GPA and volunteers as a student judge and coach for her former high school’s speech and debate team, and at New Horizons, a nonprofit that works with persons with disabilities.

“I’ve gotten to do so many things, I have been so blessed,” Finau said. “I remember being in Washington, D.C., on the steps [of the Lincoln Memorial] and thinking, ‘How is this possible for a girl from a little island that nobody has heard of?’ It was because of CSUN.

If you have that burning desire to do something, it’s possible, but you’ve got to seize the opportunities, and you have to have people to believe in you. The people here at CSUN believed in me.”

Finau, whose parents emigrated from Tonga in the 1980s, said she also found support from her family — in particular, her older sister, who has disabilities.

“She reminds me what it means to be kind, even when you’re really stressed out,” she said. “And she reminds me that, even if it is my worst day, I am doing something positive for the community.”

Finau said her time as a Panetta intern in the fall of 2015 helped her focus on what she wants to do with her life.

“What I learned was that no matter what talents you have, it is your civic duty to give back and change as many lives a possible,” she said.

To that end, Finau plans to attend graduate school in the fall, “because knowledge gives you the power and increases the resources you have to make a difference in people’s lives,” and eventually go to law school, she said.

“Jekyll and Hyde” criminal will serve 12 years after Supreme Court trial

By
Philip Cass
-

A man described as a “Jekyll and Hyde” character will spend 12 years in jail for a series of assaults and robberies.

Summing up the case in the Supreme Court, Mr Justice Cato said Tevita Vaka was unrepentant and there was little prospect of him being rehabilitated.

Vaka, 28, was taken to the United States by his  natural mother when he was young, but returned in 2009.

He almost immediately offended and was sentenced to two years suspended.

Six years later he became involved in a series of violent and pre-meditated attacks and robberies.

Earlier this year he was sentenced to six years for the assault and robbery of a restaurant owner and his wife.

Vaka and his accomplice Rodney Toki were convicted after a trial by jury lasting several  days.

They  were  each convicted of two counts of robbery, serious housebreaking, causing serious damage to things and two counts of common assault.

On November 28 2015 they robbed an elderly couple  Mr and Mrs Swift  who lived in rented  accommodation  near the Vuna road not far from the NZ High Commission.

Mr Justice Cato described the assault as brutal and cowardly.

Later that night they assaulted a couple in a parked car and after they fled they robbed the vehicle.

“Mr Vaka is not unintelligent, and quite able  to conduct himself in a restrained and civilized manner, but as this offending demonstrates, he assumes an altogether different personality when engaged in criminal enterprise,” Mr Justice Cato said.

“It seems he has a Jekyll and Hyde personality, and that is what makes him unpredictable and a dangerous presence in society unless he takes stock of his life and takes steps to control his antisocial behaviour.

The judge said Vaka had been engaged in three robberies, two planned and serious within about four months of each other.

“He has it seems little regard for the wellbeing of others,” he said.

Vaka’s sentence was added to the term imposed on him in January, meaning he will spend 12 years in prison.

Toki was sentenced to six years, with the last 18 months suspended.

“Like many young offenders that come before the courts Toki has, I suspect, associates who have little to do in their spare time but drink with their peers and engage in criminal offending to gain easy money,” the judge said.

“As he will now find out, money earned in this way has serious consequences.”

The main points

  • A man described as a “Jekyll and Hyde” character will spend 12 years in jail for a series of assaults and robberies.
  • Summing up the case in the Supreme Court, Mr Justice Cato said Tevita Vaka was unrepentant and there was little prospect of him being rehabilitated.
  • Earlier this year he was sentenced to six years for the assault and robbery of a restaurant owner and his wife.
  • Vaka’s latest sentence was added to the term imposed on him in January, meaning he will spend 12 months in prison.
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