Thank you Matangi Tonga for keeping the public informed of this destruction at Va'epopua. It is very unfortunate that the Prime Minister and this Government have blatantly disregarded our petition, which he and members of Parliament had approved in September 2015.
I fully support the calls to stop this destruction and to preserve what is left of the Sia Heu Lupe complex. Not only is this [golf course] project destroying a significant and irreplaceable cultural heritage site but it is creating a major environmental disaster, which will endanger the lives of the people in this area.
By disregarding and disrespecting Parliament’s decision on our petition the Prime Minister is sending out the message that it is no use putting time and effort to petition Parliament on serious issues of concern to the people of Tonga. What hope can we, the people of Tonga who value our culture and environment, have in this “so called democratic system” where there is an apparent lack of Government’s accountability to Parliament, and Parliament does not have any monitoring mechanism to follow up its decision to ensure that it is carried out.
Please Prime Minister Pohiva, think again and think again, and do not harden your heart, because you are making a mockery of our Parliamentary system and lower the standard of behaviour and integrity that we expect of Tonga’s Prime Minister. You have Tongans and friends of Tonga with the archeological, cultural, environmental and engineering expertise and the hearts and minds to build our nation, please Prime Minister use them. You are destroying our environment and in the process destroying our very fragile “democracy”, and our trust in you and this Government.
Faka‘apa‘apa Atu
‘Ana Hau‘alofa‘ia Koloto
