Editor
Thank you for your article on the New Police Station for Pangai. As I read through the article, I remain stunned to know that the New Zealand Government continues to spend money on Tonga’s Police - 14M during the past four years!
As a resident of Vaini, I note from your article that close to 1M was spent on the new Police Station built in 2010 but ever since its completion, the crime rates in my village have continued to rise.
Has there been any evaluation undertaken to assess how effective NZ’s tax payer’s funds utilized on Tonga’s Police has been? If only NZ’s assistance (through new Police stations) supported and complemented the role of the police in protecting communities and enforcing the Law. This is certainly not the case in Vaini where residents continue to live in extreme fear of burglaries! Even residents adjacent to the newly built Police station and homes within close proximity of the Police station live in greater fear.
My house was robbed last year in November with goods worth over $20,000 stolen. Of course, no action was taken by Police to capture the thieves, therefore three months later (this year), a further break-in occurred, this time with more damages and more goods lost. I suspected the same thieves were involved as signs indicated familiarity with the surroundings and given no one had bothered to catch them previously, why not again. Some of the missing items were found by relatives in a home near to our house, however upon notifying the Police to press charges, nothing was done! (or has been done to date). With utter frustration and annoyance, I arrived at the Police station angrily demanding a response. The timid and whispered reply from the Police Officer in uniform, on duty, inside the newly built NZ funded Police station was “I’m sorry but one of our own Police officers was involved in the break-ins at your home thus we cannot do anything as he has tried to prevent & stop every move we’ve made to work on your case. Please do not tell anyone else here that I have told you this as I will loose my job”. Only then did it dawn on me why the crime rate continues to rise – because Law Enforcement Officials themselves break the Law and are involved in the robberies!! So who charges the Police for stealing?
What a waste of NZ tax payer’s money when such buildings are being utilised by Police officials to plan out their next targeted house to burgle as opposed to upholding stability, safety and security amongst community members. Or is it only in Vaini?
Malo
'Amelia 'Ofakineiafu
Living in extreme fear in Vaini
