King wanted people to achieve economic freedom [1]
Monday, December 12, 2005 - 20:45. Updated on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 - 15:05.
MISCONCEPTIONS IN THE ORACLE OF TONGAN POLITICS AND THE ECONOMY
A commentary by Kaveinga e Folau
In 1977 I was having a drink at Club Tonga one afternoon when the doorman attempted to block this man...s entry into the club by informing him that he could not come in as he was not a member. This man I later learnt to be the one and only ... 'Akilisi Pohiva. Standing defiantly in front of the doorman, and making sure that everybody in the club would hear him, declared, "I have already put-in my membership application and that makes it legal for me to enter this here premises." The doorman not being sure of the club's constitution stepped aside and allowed the new member to enter. As I watched from bar, Akilisi strode in victoriously first to the game room and then to the bar, few minutes later he walked-out again as if he had proven a point and indeed he did. I remember thinking at that moment, "what a knob". But I did admire the audacity of the man. Later on in that same year I left for overseas to study and have lived there since.
The point of this story is that 'Akilisi's rise to prominence had coincided with the western worlds... most significant change (politics and economics) since the industrial revolution almost two hundred years ago. As the west industrialised there was an increasing synchronisation of markets, and always there is a pendulum swing between demonisation of the excesses of governments and celebration of the power of markets (and vice versa). But since the early 1980s, with the advent of the first real round of post-war globalized market the pendulum has swung in favour of markets. The world now is so market focused that we have now dragged the market into places in our culture where it never went before. In fact we have "sandbagged" our culture.
Invention and creativity
Politicians such as 'Akilisi Pohiva, Clive Edwards and the rest of the parliamentarians should be lamenting their inability to understand that the age of replication of repetition focusing on flawless production processes are waning. What I mean by this is that we can survive in the future if we know what is left over as India dominates digital process and China dominates fabrication. What is left over is invention and creativity. The very notion of work is based on the idea of replication. When you outsource replication, you are left with innovation.
Globalisation has the tendency to flatten small systems such as Tonga. The question is how do we get on the playing field and once we make it, how do we achieve long term sustainability.
Economic implosion
As you digest what I am saying thus far, and considering the mount Everest we have to climb to get into globalisation of the world economics shouldn't we have had the foresight twenty five years ago to place Tonga at least in a comparable position today? The answer of course we did, but we had an implosion.
In 1980, also mark the rise of the demi-god 'Akilisi Pohiva, the one who lit the fuse that caused the economic implosion that we find ourselves in today. I say this because the quagmire, of the economy was started by 'Akilisi's blowviating that a) If you've got money. I must be loosing some; b) if you are poor ... democracy can make you rich; c) if you are a commoner democracy will bring you equality; d) etc and so forth, even if you don't have a pet. Democracy will ensure that you are entitled to one, because its your god-given human right.
Also, in 1980 his majesty T4 started travelling all over the globe. He...d meet anyone kings ... presidents ... prime ministers ... business people, the rich and the poor searching, begging, asking. There were over 30 clocks on the wall of his royal bedroom, each one for nearly every major city in the western world. There was a tub of cold water placed next to his bed to soak his feet in a desperate attempt to stay awake. Why? Oh why? He needed an industrial revolution in Tonga quickly.
In 1977 when Tonga had a lousy $3 million dollars in Reserve, and some may remember that public servants at times were asked that their pay may be deferred for a week or two because Treasury would not dip in to the Reserve. The only revenue the government collected were from tariffs and excise duty. T4 then bought himself a TV and a satellite dish. He would check the time on the clocks of the wall in his bedroom and the city whose name is labelled to that clock and thus tuned his TV to the stock exchange of that country, learning and searching through countless financial reviews and news. From this, he accurately figured out that in 1980 the global economy would be here!!
Romantic views
In this global economy, T4 understood the rules of engagement. He needed capitals and millions of it. He tried to entice the masses to be more daring with ideas and inventions, and create a domestic environment that is politically stable and socially harmonious for foreign investors and local entrepreneurs. The problem was the pro-democracy movement cajoled the Tongan people to look inward rather than expand outward. This is because 'Akilisi and Co successfully and carelessly made people have perceptions of grandeur under full democracy, and thus more and more people started to have these unrealistic romantic views for the ideology of democracy. And this is where the clash occurred. The king wanted his people to achieve economic freedom where they can master the hardest part of democracy (capitalism) and 'Akilisi and co gave the Tongan people the perception of freedom with absolutely no understanding that democracy is sustained only by mastering the art of capitalism i.e. globalization.
Failure of third world democracy will mean a vicious cycle of coups and counter coups like Fiji and most third world countries around the world. That is a fact; this is what we are seeing now with the strikes. Clive Edwards said, people will strike out in violence. 'Akilisi and the pro-democracy movement had stated ... blood will spill onto the streets." Kalafi Moala said, the people will not rest until the royals are brought down either by violence or peaceful means. Vuna Faka...otusia said, "There is a group of people already prepared to sacrifice their lives by assassinating the royal family." Futa Helu had said, "The only way things will change is by revolution." The devil in me said, "Bring it on and we will finish it." But, we are different to one another in personality, style and philosophy. What counts here, especially under the current climate, is "Action Logic" ... the way that we interpret our environment and then behave as a consequence.
Insolvency graveyard
If we have to have a crash course of why the economy always seems to be in an insolvency graveyard, then we should look no further then this strike by the P.S.A. It has the hallmark of the three D's: Dumb, Dumber and dumbest, and I am being polite here. The same goes for the government's side as well, albeit to a lesser extent.
Monumental changes
It would be fair to acknowledge and establish the blue print and philosophies the king had try to promote and implement since 1980 and before we discuss the strike any further. There were three monumental changes or perceptions he wanted to achieve.
- Knowledge as Power
- Influencing behaviour in organisations
- Influencing fundamental change.
These were the way forward for the 21st millennium. Sadly, this strike represents to us and embarrassingly to westerners, an 18th Century social experiment rather than what we should have concerned ourselves with 21st Century successes. T4 needed contemporary thinkers not whingers.
Union movement
The Strikers: I honestly believe that these people have a privileged view of the world. Bureaucrats around the world usually promise more than they can deliver. The PSA wanted more money, for negative growth and low productivity. They have lost the argument within two days of walking out. Secondly, the union movement around the world is fighting for its survival because employers now demand that they too had recognised the value of the employees to the organisation and since they are the ones paying their salaries, they can provide a far better package to its employees under a work performance base agreement than any deal any Union or any collective bargaining group can deliver. The members of the PSA represented .03 of the entire population of Tonga. The pay rise that they are asking for are there or near about 35 million, which 3.5% of the governments budget forward estimate ...05 to 2006 of some hundred and forty three millions. Why should a minority have a bigger slice of the pie, and isn...t it against the principle of democracy that the minority overrule the majority.
The PSA negotiating team are so inept that I would not allow them to negotiate a cat from a tree. I mean, this team have no idea about the rules of engagement when negotiating. When you are involved in a high power negotiation, it is imperative to put away a few aces and wild cards to play when the time is right. A professional politician will always tell you "TIMING is everything in Politics." This MOB put everything on the table, and then tried to intimidate the government like a street thug.
The two separate parts of the pro-democracy movement, who had a separate agenda to that of the strikers further diluted the goals of the PSA to which the strikers now made a 180 degree turn still believing that the PDM...s agenda was to help them. This is where they had made a monumental mistake. "You cannot LEAD by FOLLOWING."
After six and bit weeks, the government made a tactical manoeuvre; they rotated their negotiating team in a new tact of approach. Two of the three man team were of high calibre. Steven Halapua and Filakepa agreed to the striker...s terms with one condition ... you have to find the money yourselves within the government to fund your pay rise. The strikers saved face, claimed victory and thought they had really won. This was their biggest loss. Three thousand strikers at 60% - 70% - 80% equate to more than 74% of the national budget.
Devastate the country
I thought to myself ... surely they can see that in the long run, their demands will devastate the country. I mean the finance minister warned them, the government...s economic advisors from Australia (ANU) and Fiji U.S.P warned them in details of the consequences. But there seemed to be a divorcing of the action from the consequences. It suddenly dawned on me, that the strikers... stand was predicated on the faulty assumption that business is an academic discipline instead of a profession, akin to medicine and law. It...s theory versus practicality. His Majesty...s hope of knowledge as power for his people is sadly still a world away.
This strike did not have to and should not have happened, had the government played the type of leadership role that encourages cooperative programs, communication skills and ethical work practices amongst the beauracrats. I am not saying that the government did not already have these but there seems to be a certain ignorance even arrogance from the upper echelon of the government and perhaps such skills and abilities were not actively encourage or motivated. Whatever the reason might be the government must take a lion...s share of the blame for this strike, which should not have happened.
The prime minister Prince Lavaka Ata, must as he should take all the blame for the government he led. No-one else can take the blame but him. His behaviour over the past two years have been disturbing and eerie as if to say I...ve done this much work and everybody should thank me for it. At times the prince has treated his ministers and members of parliament with contempt. Over the strike he acted like a child, that is to say that daddy took the blame ... he refused to take advice from his older brother and first cousin and his sister come in to bail him out of trouble. I know the Prince Tuipelehake should have been the premier. He is qualified for the job and he is the Tu...i Faleua and he is almost as gifted as his father the late Prince Fatafehi Tu...ipelehake.
What the premier had failed to focus on as the premier minister were the three "Ps": PEOPLE; PROCESSES: and PROPERTY. Give people space and the ability to influence outcomes. Be clear about the objectives, then support Staff to get there, don...t worry about how they get-there so long as they get it right. Provide tools and a safe environment for conflict to be aired. Reflect upon how you behave and why it is you behave in certain ways. Simple ain...t it the result would have been, I believe this conflict would not have eventuated in a industrial action.
Market driven
We must be clear about certain discipline and principles of Globalization. The global economy is market driven and market focused. This means economic problems require economic solutions. Industrial conflict requires political leaders to formulate and establish processes of arbitration and reconciliation as a matter of constitutional requirements. Political reforms have never ever been an economic solution nor will they ever be.
- Kaveinga e Folau
(Abridged for length- ed)