Editor,
I am writing concerning a set of new bills that are to be introduced into the House for enactment into Law. I have noted a few points. 1. Consolidate a huge amount of legal power in the hands of very few and possibly unelected officials, and 2. Provide the platform for more such bills by precedence, creating a highly corrosive and corruptible government and legal environment. Fundamentally, the justifications for the bills are for greater resource security for Tongans. But rather than enacting a system that promotes inclusive governance, thus greater checks and balances, the bills push for a more centralized powerful bureaucracy - not even the Parliament. I hope you take note of my concerns, when these issues are still conceived.
Ta e lango kei mama’o. If they are allowed to pass without the gaps and holes addressed, not only would they themselves become problematic, but they would entrench a system so corruptible the stability and survival of the Tongan nation could be at stake, especially as they have the potential to destabilize the whole country and put it under foreign administration and direct influence.
For example, one of the most important of living resources for a nation is its water supply. The state is always with the duty of securing and making sure that it is available, unfettered and unexploited, and (ideally) freely, to its people. However, since most is a monopoly, corporations have always had interests in a monopoly and especially on a vital resource that is always on demand. Recently there has been a lot of privatization of water in a lot of countries in every continent. The result is unnecessary exploitation of the peoples, and the subsequent riots and instability because of popular uprisings against enslaving costs since profit is the moral responsibility of corporations. That trend is common to any case study of the privatization of water, especially in the developing world.
Would this be a repeat of the Shoreline saga? You know the answer.
What are you going to do about it.
Now the idea of securing resources for the livelihood of the people is of utmost importance, especially when an economy is not as big and advanced to guarantee the best service is provided. For Tonga, she does not fit that context. Therefore, a free market, investment driven, privatized service system mostly fails. But most of the proposed powers are usually held in most cases for emergency purposes, as the policy circles, wider public, and administrative community are not that big enough that issues cannot be discussed properly in a short timeframe.
I hope this helps your duties and responsibilities to the Tongan public.
Malo aupito and God bless.
Samisoni
sam [dot] tuloa [at] gmail [dot] com
