Hon. Fe'ao Vakata refuses to resign

Dishonourable Fe'ao Vakatā should resign. There is no excuse for bullying, harassment and aggressive behaviour and it's even worse that the aggrieved is a woman. He is not fit to remain a member Parliament let alone being a Minister. He should know that the right thing to do is to apologise to Tupou'āhau Fakakovikaetau, then pack his bags and go home. He has brought disgrace and dishonour to the office of Minister of Internal Affair.

Editor,

This case a real test of the competence of our PM's good governance policies in running his Government. Such rude, immoral and disrespectful behavior should never be tolerated in the Tongan public, let alone, the Tongan Cabinet.

The authority to depose a Cabinet Minister for gross misconduct used to be the prerogative of the King of Tonga until it was given to the PM by the current Constitution under the 2010 amendments. It was one of the subject matters that the current PM used in order to promote a move towards democracy. He was so adamant that this authority should be given to the people so that Cabinet Ministers be accountable to the people. Our PM, therefore, has to put into action his authority in this matter.

Hon Vakata's behavior recalls our dark pre-Christian days before the missionaries arrived at our shores with what has become the biblical foundation of our Constitution and our modern Tongan society. During that time, the chiefs could readily dispose of their subjects if they were inconveniences to him. But with our Constitution in place, Hon Vakata should be legally charged with assault.

This matter should be taken up with the legal authorities and the Police. We should not allow Hon Vakata to walk freely in this country as if he is untouchable. No one is untouchable in Democracy. He should have resigned long time ago when this event happened. His behavior utterly contradicts his Ministry's stance on CEDAW, last year. As the Minister who insisted that the Government should ratify CEDAW to protect the rights of women in Tonga, he should have known better.

No man, including Cabinet Ministers, should violates women's rights publicly in Tonga with this gross misconduct against a woman. Where are women fighting for the rights of women in Tonga to set forth their voice against this Minister for such a public display of disregard for women's right?

In this case, one woman, who exercised her rights to freely expressed herself doing her job in a manner she saw best fit, has been violated by a male, who happened to be a Cabinet Minister. Hon Vakata's behavior is not only domestic violence. It is domestic violence shamelessly committed in public.

As a male who stands for the protection of women's right, I would like to see Hon Vakata be brought to justice for his irresponsible action. There are laws to protect violence and assault against women in this country. It does not matter whether the woman in question is a Director or a Cleaner, we should always maintain a No Violence Against Women policy, both in public and domestic settings.

Faka'apa'apa atu,

Rev Dr Ma'afu Palu