Appeal Court declares $3.38m worth of rock, illegally extracted [1]
Saturday, September 16, 2017 - 17:20. Updated on Saturday, September 16, 2017 - 17:53.
Lord Nuku and the Yan Jiang Group Ltd were ordered by the Court of Appeal on 6 September to pay Lord Luani TOP$3,380,335, being the net value of rock that they illegally extracted from a lot of land in Lord Luani’s estate at Malapo.
The land dispute case between Lord Nuku and Lord Luani started over seven years ago on 26 March 2010, when Lord Nuku applied to lease Lot 90 for 10 years from Lord Luani. Lord Luani then was the father of the current Lord Luani and he was also the Governor of Vava’u.
The lease agreement was signed by Lord Nuku’s daughter, Tangi Kina ‘Ahome’e, on the behalf of an entity, known as the Island Quarry.
Before Cabinet endorsed the lease agreement, Lord Nuku gifted Lord Luani the sum of $30,000, then on March 2010 Island Quarry entered into an agreement with Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd, allowing the company to store mining equipment and to erect accommodation for miners on Lot 90.
On 12 May 2010, Lord Luani died. On 13 May his son succeeded to the Luani title. On 19 May 2010 Cabinet approved the grant of the lease applied for by Island Quarry.
Lord Nuku
Lord Nuku’s involvement in the quarrying project appeared to have been by the fact that he was a Cabinet member during 2009 when the Tongan government embarked on a major road improvement scheme, financed by the Chinese government and the principal contractor for the project was Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd.
The leasing of Lot 90 by Island Quarry and the agreement it signed with Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd was only for the storing of mining equipment and to erect accommodation for miners, but not to mine.
So late in 2010 Lord Nuku met Paula Kava, a neighbour of Lord Luani at Lot 85. Paula agreed to surrender his right to Lot 85 to the estate owner, Lord Luani. This made it possible for Lord Nuku’s son, Faka’osifono Valevale to lease the property.
Paula received a gift of $130,000 from Lord Nuku and supposedly, a tax allotment at Ha’ateiho, In return for surrendering his right to Lot 85 to Lord Luani so that it could be leased by his son.
On 24 January 2011 Paula Kava wrote to Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd and informed them that he had surrendered his tax allotment at Malapo to Faka’osifono Valevale on 27 January 2011. The letter was also signed by Faka’osfono, the “New land Owner.”
On 31 January 2011 Island Quarry entered into a second agreement with Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd that Lot 85 was to be made available for them to mine. The lease tenure was for 20 years, commencing on 31 January 2011 and the rental for 20 years lease was TOP$500,000, to be paid to Lord Niuku within seven days. The agreement was signed by Lord Nuku on 31 January 2011.
Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd proceeded and started quarrying Lot 85 toward the end of January 2011 up until May 2013, when quarrying was forcibly halted by Lord Luani.
On 10 August 2012 Lord Luani wrote to the Minister of Land to cancel the lease of Lot 90 that had been approved by Cabinet on 19 May 2010.
On 16 August 2013 Cabinet rescinded the lease that it granted on 19 May 2010.
However on 24 February 2012 Cabinet endorsed Paula Kava’s surrendering of his right to Lot 85, then on 8 May 2013 Lot 85 was reverted to the Estate Owner, Lord Luani.
So by 8 May 2013 Lot 85 was reverted to Lord Luani, and on 16 August 2013 Cabinet rescinded the leasing of Lot 90 to Island Quarry.
Land Court
The case was first heard at the Land Court in 2015. Lord Luani was the Plaintiff and the Defendants were: 1. Lord Luani, 2. Yan Jian Group Co. Ltd, 3. Yan Jian Tonga Ltd.
Judge M. D. Scott on 5 May 2017 the Land Court passed its decision.
Relating to Lot 90 it declared that once the First Defendant, Lord Nuku had paid all arrears of rent due under the lease applied for on 26 March 2010 and providing that the annual rental payments were made on due date, the Plaintiff was restrained from removing the Defendants from Lot 90, until 31 March 2020.
With regards to Lot 85, the three defendants jointly and severally [initially] had to pay the plaintiff, TOP$5,556,000.000. This sum would attract interest at the rate of 10% from the date of the judgment until satisfaction.
The Land Court’s decision was finally announced on 5 May 2017.
Appeal Court
Then it went to the Court of Appeal.
The appeal against the Land Court’s decision was heard by the Appeal Court on 4 September 2017 and a decision was announced on 6 September 2017.
Lord Nuku and the Yan Jiang Group Ltd were ordered by the Court of Appeal on 6 September to pay Lord Luani TOP$3,380,335, the net value of rock that they illegally extracted from a lot of land in Lord Luani’s estate at Malapo.