A vote by Tonga’s Members of Parliament on Thursday 8 November, agreed (16 - 4) to recognize that Prime Minister 'Akilisi Pohiva and six cabinet ministers had inappropriately spent their budget allocations for the 2015-16, 2016-17, and 2017-18 Financial Years.

The historical vote recognised the findings of a Report of the Auditor General.

The presentation of the Report of the Auditor General to the House was called for by a petition signed by over 3300 people that came into the House.

The Tongan Parliament has been struggling with the petition since it was tabled into parliament in May by the People’s Representative for ‘Eua, Tevita Lavemaau, who was a Minister of Finance for the current government from March 9 until early September 2017.

The most interesting aspect of the Petition, apart from proposing for the House to defer its deliberation over the 2018-19 National Budget while the Auditor General audited the budget allocations, was its statement for the House to be aware that there would also be impeachment cases against the ministers who allegedly misused their budgets. The Ministries are:

1. Five portfolios under PM Pohiva during those years - including Education and Training, Internal Affairs, Foreign Affairs and the Public Service Commission;
2. Infrastructure and Tourism (Hon. Semisi Sika);
3. Finance, (Hon. Pohiva Tu‘i‘onetoa);
4. Justice and Prisons, (Hon. Vuna Fa‘otusia);
5. Education and Training (Hon. Penisimani Fifita);
6. Revenue Collection and Tax (Hon. Mateni Tapueluelu);
7. Trade, Innovation and Labour, (Hon. Tevita Tu‘i Uata).

The Auditor’s report was tabled into parliament, and spotlighted that proper procedure had not been followed in the management of public funds. The Auditor reported that people were employed by the Prime Minister by a single source selection process. He found there was unpaid tax and there were no reports of what they had achieved with the expenditure. For example, the PM's expenditure of $200,000 on software development for education was a specific focus in the report of an area where proper procedure had not been followed.

Public concern over the Auditor’s Report was spurred on after the Prime Minister elaborated in a Press Conference he called on Friday 2 November, that he had broken the laws a number of times, and that was how he got to where he is.

But now, in spite of that confession and after all the revelations of the wrong doings of the Prime Minister and some of his Cabinet Ministers, there was no application from any Members to impeach any of the Cabinet Ministers. The House simply voted 16-4 to recognise the findings of the Auditor General, before it closed.

The vote for the House to just recognise the Report of the Auditor General, was initiated by the Speaker, Lord Fakafanua.

The four members who voted against the proposal, were Lord Nuku, Lord Tu‘ilakepa, Lord Tu‘ivakano and Lord Tu‘i‘afitu.