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Red cross holds disaster training in Vavaʻu

By
Kaniva Staff
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Tonga’s Red Cross held disaster relief volunteer training in Neiafu to make sure the communities are better prepared to respond to future local, area or national disasters.

Sixteen volunteers from ʻEua, Haʻapai, Tongatapu and Vavaʻu responded to invitations to attend the training which started on February 29 to March 4.

Participants were trained about “facilitation skills, disaster cycle, assessments and relief distribution”.

It was held at the conference room of Tonga Red Cross Vavaʻu Branch. Among the guests were town officers and District Officers of Vava’u Group and partnership stakeholders.

PoliceMagistrate  and Government Representative Mr. Paula Tatafu officially opened the training and he thanked Tonga Red Cross for the work it conducted to respond to emergency situations including the spread of Zika virus in the kingdom.

“Opportunity to teach people in risk reduction minimize the effects and impacts disasters such as Cyclone Ula, with all our support we will make a better Tonga to face any situation of disaster”, he said.

Mr. Sione Taumoefolau, Secretary General of Tong Red Cross said: “Tonga Red Cross in its capacity and auxiliary role to government, helps and alleviate suffering of people in many disaster response, equipping trainers with essential skills will help to minimize sufferings.

The training was led by Disaster Management Officer, Mr. Inoke Taufa and assisted by Ms. Petra Mackay of the Australian Red Cross.

Laʻita
Those who attended the training. Photo/Tonga Government

Two toddlers poisoned after eating hotdogs in Tonga

By
Kaniva Staff
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Two toddlers ages one and two-year-old were rushed to hospital in critical condition after eating hotdogs last night, but the children are now doing okay, a health official in Tonga said.

The officer at Vaiola Hospital said the Ministry of Health is investigating whether or not the poison was linked to  hotdogs  served as part of a refreshment at a funeral service in Ma’ufanga, Radio Tonga news reported.

Medical officer Lisiate ‘Ulufonua said about 10 people were also received at hospital last night after the report of food poisoning.

The Ministry of Health investigatiion continues.

Engaging women to contribute to safer communities in Tonga

By
Kaniva Staff
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Through its first Open Day to promote a greater understanding of various services police departments and specialists do in serving the community women and students were urged to work in police force.

March 8 is International Women’s Day and the theme for the special event was “Tonga Police women connecting with youth of Tonga for a safer place”.

Senior college students and community leaders were invited to the event which it showcased demonstrations and exhibits from the Dog Section, Search and Rescue, Crime Scene Investigation with the Forensic Investigation Team and Cyber Security.

The idea was to give the public an insight of what Police do.

“Today we are not only marking International Women’s Day but we are opening the door because we are the people’s police, we come from the people and we must serve and keep you safe to the best of our ability,” Tonga’s Police Commissioner Steve Caldwell told guests during the marking ceremony of the Women’s Day.

Dr ‘Ana Taufe’ulungaki a Former Minister of Education told guests Police wanted to employ more women in Police force.

The United Nations 2016 theme for International Women’s Day is “Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality”.

“It will equally focus on new commitments under UN Women’s Step It Up initiative, and other existing commitments on gender equality, women’s empowerment and women’s human rights”.

Tongan woman chosen for oceania rugby board

By
Kaniva Staff
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Tongan distinguished business consultant ‘Aloma Johansson has been elected to the board of Oceania Rugby.

A statement from the organisation said Johanson was one of two independent board members elected “to continue the growth and development of the organisation at a time when membership and playing numbers continue to flourish in the region”.

Aloma
Aloma Johansson

She has been appointed to the position of non-elected independent director.

An accountant and former Tonga Chamber of Commerce President, Aloma was also the first woman to sit on the Tongan Rugby Union Authority and was interim CEO in 2011/2012.

Oceania Rugby is one of six Regional Associations of World Rugby. It is responsible for representing the interests of its 16 Member Unions and 1 Associate Member to promote the growth of Rugby throughout Oceania.

Tonga A to face junior japan at world pacific rugby challenge

By
Kaniva Staff
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Tonga A and Junior Japan are set to open the World Rugby Pacific Challenge tomorrow afternoon  March 8,  2016 at 3:30pm at ANZ Stadium Suva, Fiji.

The team consists of all local players selected from the Lavengamalie Local Competition, a composition of mostly young players under age 25.

The team for tomorrow:

1. Loosehead prop Vakaolafehi Pole’o
2. Hooker Taimikovi Fangatua
3. Tighthead prop Sailosi Malimali
4. Left lock Vainanuma Manu
5. Right lock Charlie Pahulu
6. Left flanker Timote Paseka
7. Right flanker Bruce Folau
8. Number eight Sione Lolohea (c)

 

9. Scrum half Sosefo Ma’ake
10. Fly half Patelesio ‘One’one
11. Left wing Tu’ihakavalu Ika
12. Left centre Alfred Hausia
13. Right centre Siosaia Palei
14. Right wing Atelea Moa
15. Full back Samuela Fiefia
16. Front row Sione Vaea
17. Front row Isitolo Tuumotoa
18. Front row ‘Aisea To’a
19. Solomone Lavaka
20. Joji Tu’ipulotu
21. Mateo Malupo
22. Fe’ofa’aki Kaumavae
23. Lemeki Moala

 

The Coaching Officials are;

Head coach – ‘Isileli fatani

Assistant coach – Eufemio Taholo ‘Anitoni and Soane Havea

Scrum Coach & S & C trainer – Kuata Tokolahi

Team Manager – Manu Mataele

Physio – Siosaia Vakasiuola

Schedules:

Tues 8 March      Japan A V Tonga A ANZ Stadium 3.30pm

Fiji Warriors V Samoa A ANZ Stadium 6.00pm

Sat 12 March        Samoa A V Tonga A ANZ Stadium 3.30pm

Fiji Warriors V Japan A ANZ Stadium 6.00pm

Thurs 17 March   Samoa A V Japan A ANZ Stadium 3.30pm

Fiji Warriors V Tonga A ANZ Stadium 6.00pm

Mon 21 March     3rd V 4th ANZ Stadium 3.30pm

1st V 2nd ANZ Stadium 6.00pm

Van collides with car in Pea

By
Kaniva Staff
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A car and van collided on a road in Pea this afternoon.

The van smashed into the rear of the car.

Further details of what had happened were unavailable.

Crown signs settlement with Kali Fungavaka’s widow

By
Kaniva Staff
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After about four years when Kali Fungavaka was killed in Tonga the Crown has signed a deed of settlement, acknowledging breaching of constitutional rights to life, liberty and freedom within Tonga.

The details of the settlement were intended to be kept secret however the agreements  entitled Fungavaka’s five children with his former wife  to some of the settlement provided by the Crown.

Tonga’s Acting Attorney General  said on Thursday 3, the Supreme Court has declared the actions of certain Police Officers as servants of the Kingdom of Tonga towards Kali Fungavaka on the night of 17 August and morning of 18 August 2012 were wrongful.

Kali Fungavaka was of Tongan origin and a police officer in New Zealand while he visited Tonga in 2012.

The Acting AG said the  declaration made by the Supreme Court under clause 103A of the Constitution was the final outcome of the civil case lodged against the Crown by Fungavaka’s widow, Ms Audra Watts, who was also the Administrator of the estate of the late Kali Peaua Fungavaka.

The Crown then entered into a deed of settlement with the estate of the deceased to compensate them for their loss, related out of pocket expenses and legal costs.

That deed of settlement is confidential between the parties, but it was based on achieving justice for both parties.

Ms Watt’s  legal counsel Mr Frank Hogan of Auckland New Zealand said his clients acknowledges the entitlement of 5 children of Kali Fungavaka to some of the settlement provided by the Crown, and so she will within one month take steps to set up an appropriate trust or trusts for the children.

Fungavaka died on August 23, 2012 in Nuku’alofa after he was assaulted by certain Police Officers and a civilian in cells at the Nuku’alofa Central Police Station on the night of August  17 and the morning of August 18,  2012.

The five Police Officers and civilian involved in the assaults were charged and prosecuted in 2014.

Two Police Officers were convicted of manslaughter and one Police Officer was convicted of common assault.

The civilian was convicted in a separate trial by a judge and jury with causing grievous harm to Mr Fungavaka.

The two Police Officers convicted of manslaughter were sentenced to 11 years imprisonment, with one year suspended, and 9 years imprisonment, with one year suspended, respectively.

The other Police Officer convicted of common assault, and the civilian, received fully suspended imprisonment sentences.

NZ and Aust high school funding for Tonga withheld after funds misspent

By
Kalino Latu
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Australian and New Zealand funds for non-government high schools have been withheld by the Tongan Ministry of Education and Training.

The Ministry withheld the money after it was discovered that some of the grants had not been used according to the purpose of the funding programme.

New Zealand and Australia co-fund a multi-million dollar programme for secondary schools in the kingdom.

Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has contributed TP$30,554,487 (Aus$18.5 million) since 2009 and New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) provided TP$12 million (NZ$9 million) to cover the period 2013 to 2016.

“In late 2014, it came to the attention of the Ministry of Education and MFAT that some of the grants were being diverted into school operational budgets, which is not their intended purpose,” an MFAT spokesperson said.

The money will continue to be withheld until an agreement is reached with Tonga’s Ministry of Education and Training and the schools.

MFAT and DFAT asked the Ministry to make clear to non-government secondary schools in Tonga how the school grants should be spent.

The Ministry has put distribution of the moneys on hold until an agreement between the Government and the schools has been reached.

“MFAT understands the agreement is now awaiting final approval,” the MFAT spokesman said.

The programme provides school grants to non-government secondary schools to supplement teachers’ salaries so they compare with government secondary school pay.

A spokesperson for the Australian High Commission in Tonga told Kaniva News they were “aware MET has been working very closely with representatives from non-government schools to overcome programme issues and that positive progress has been made on this.”

It said Australia had committed $Aus13 million to the Tonga Education Support Programme, which is managed by the Tongan Ministry of Education.

It said all DFAT scheduled payments under this agreement were up to date as per the current agreement.

“While DFAT provides support to MET in accordance with our agreement, DFAT doesn’t fund schools directly and is not withholding school grant funding,” the spokesperson said.

He said Australia also supported Tonga’s post-secondary education sector through skills development that responded to labour market demand.

We sought comment from the Minister of Education, ‘Akilisi Pohiva and the Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Education, but to no avail.

Free Wesleyan Church schools

The Free Wesleyan Church Schools’ Director of Education, Dr Mele’ana Puloka, told Radio FM 87.5 in January it had been two years since New Zealand and Australian funding was held back from the church’s schools.

She said she knew there were good reasons why the funding had been withheld, but the church could not only pay its teachers and disregard other staff working outside the classrooms.

In 2011 the grant paid TP$400 per head for each non-government school student, made up of TP$100 from Australia, TP$100 from New Zealand and TP$200 from the Tongan government.

The money was intended to top up non-government school teachers’ pay to match the equivalent of high salaries offered by the government to its teachers.

Kaniva News has seen a letter sent by former Ministry of Education Director Emily Pouvalu to Dr Puloka in December 2014 asking for details of how the grant awarded to the church’s schools were being used during 2011, 2012, and 2013.

“The information you will provide will allow MET to make available to the donors what they like to know on how the grant is assisting to reduce the disparity of the salaries received by teachers in the government schools and those of the non-government schools,” the letter read.

Dr Puloka reportedly said she had written to New Zealand and Australian authorities clarifying things she thought might satisfy them and allow them to release the funds, but they still withhold the money.

The main points

  • Australian and New Zealand funds for non-government high schools have been withheld by the Tongan Ministry of Education.
  • The Ministry withheld the money after it was discovered that some of the grants had not been used according to the purpose of the funding programme.
  • New Zealand and Australia co-fund a multi-million programme for secondary schools in the kingdom.
  • The money will continue to be withheld until an agreement is reached with Tonga’s Ministry of Education and Training and the schools.

Scuffle breaks out during ‘fakakuata’ meeting in Australia

By
Kalino Latu
-

The Fakaongo Church quarterly meeting in Sydney yesterday turned violent as a scuffle broke out between members of the church who were in the meeting.

The clash was broken up before it turned into a brawl and police were not called in.

The meeting was discussing the recommendation by Sydney-based Free Wesleyan Church Superintendent Rev. Dr Siotame Havea that Rev. Samiuela Taungakava become the minister of the Fakaongo.

Kaniva News had been reliably told church members were split over the recommendation.

The church in the Sydney suburb of Mortdale is  officially known as Siasi Fakaongo Uesiliana Tauataina o Tonga Inc.

Those opposing the recommendation said they were abiding by the church guidelines which say the Fakaongo Church in Australia is accountable to the President and General Secretary of the Free Wesleyan Church in Tonga and not the Tongan superintendent in Sydney appointed by the Tongan conference.

READ MORE:

The person who spoke to us on condition of anonymity described the incident as “ta’efakalotu” (unreligious).

He said the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga should do something to stop such incidents in future.

He said all churches in Australia who were under the head office in Tonga were accountable to the superintendent assigned by the Tongan conference to work at its Sydney based office.

However, the Fakaongo Church was different because it was not accountable to the Tongan superintendent in Sydney.

Attempts to contact the Fakaongo church authorities and the Tongan superintendent in Australia were unsuccessful. The Secretary General in Tonga had yet to respond to our request for comment at the time this story was written.

However, some other church officials and members in Sydney we talked to last night who asked not to be named have confirmed the incident took place.

The Fakaongo Church was established after Tongan members of the Parish Tonga, which is under the Uniting Church of Australia, broke away under the leadership of Tongan FWC minister Uesili Tu’akoi.

We understand the Free Wesleyan Church in Sydney remains split after the arrival of Dr Soatame Havea in August last year.

Dr Havea was appointed by the FWC’s 92nd conference in Tonga last year to take over from Rev. Matafonua Fotofili after he was found guilty of misconduct for his role in the collapse of the Pulela’a church.

Rev. Fotofili, the former Tongan Superintendent of the FWC in Sydney, accused Dr Havea of starting a new church. Dr Havea  and some of his followers insisted they were the rightful Free Wesleyan Church in Sydney.

The main points

  • The Fakaongo Church quarterly meeting in Sydney yesterday turned violent as a scuffle broke out between members of the church who were in the meeting.
  • The clash was broken up before it turned into a brawl and police were not called in.
  • The meeting was discussing the recommendation by Sydney-based Free Wesleyan Church Superintendent Rev. Dr Siotame Havea that of Rev. Samiuela Taungakava become the minister of the Fakaongo.
  • Kaniva News had been reliably told church members were split over the recommendation.

You may also like to read these:

Rev Fotofili claims FWC in Australia has split, accuses successor of starting new church

Australian FWC church fear the worst as Pulelaʻā leaders refuse to step down

Promises over Pulelaʻā church ‘make-believe,’ FWC conference tells members

Time to audit Pulela’ā church’s accounts, says Wesleyan General Secretary

Tongan woman sentenced in US after stealing $35,000

By
Kaniva Staff
-

A Tongan female caretaker was sentenced to two years in prison in the United States this week after stealing from a 95-year-old woman she was taking care of more than US$35,000 last year.

Ofa Atau Fifita, 33, has been given the maximum sentence of felony elder fiscal abuse for stealing cheques from the woman in her care between Feb. 6, 2015, and July 14 while she was an employee of a home care assistance company, prosecutors said. She has only eight days credit for time served.

According to Kron4 news the elderly woman’s husband contacted the sheriff’s office after they found out cheques were missing from her cheque book.

The court was told “Fifita had forged and cashed more than 30 of her checks”. .

“Fifita admitted the thefts and said she took the money because she had financial problems. Prosecutors said she stole a total of $35,300, the amount she still owes to the victim in restitution”.

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