Tonga and USA on common ground [1]
Wednesday, January 28, 2009 - 11:03. Updated on Thursday, February 5, 2015 - 21:17.
Editor,
Mr. Tuaileva's heartfelt comparison of our kingdom and the United States of America is a great tribute to democracy in action. Unfortunately, these historical events fall short of real actions but filled many people's minds with wishful thinking. There is no doubt what had happened in both countries are of historical proportions. What seems to be lacking is real action. I am sure Mr. Barak Obama's administration is still in its infancy stage, but based on what I am observing; Mr. Obama's skin color and Mr. Sevele's status as a commoner have not change one iota of the status quo. Business as usual still rules the day.
When Mr. Sevele took office as the Prime Minister of the kingdom, there were lots of hopes riding his appointment. To our dismay, the freedom of the press got more restrictions under his watch than any other time. And as Mr. Obama picked his Cabinet members to run the USA, shady characters still surface as enforcers of policies. For example, the person whom Mr. Obama picked to be the Secretary of Treasure (equivalent of Finance Minister in the kingdom) had failed to pay his income taxes for at least three straight years. Here in the USA, non-payment of income taxes usually put people in prison. Mr. Obama wants to reverse that and put a tax evader in-charge of taxes and the nation's treasury. Call it anyway you want but when a crime is committed, a criminal indictment is in order not a Treasury Secretary in the making. Change, eh?
Although I agree with Mr. Tuaileva that these political events did occur and they are of great significance, real change is still as elusive as finding honest politicians. The real change in Tonga will come when the constitution is written to make sure no one is above the law. Article II, Section 41 of the Tongan Constitution reads, "The King is the Sovereign of all the Chiefs and all the people." The kingdom's constitution has not been touched to reflect the changes we anticipated and hoped for. In the kingdom, the king is still above the law regardless of the fancy names we have pegged as political changes, and crooks are still very much part of the United States' political scene. Those facts do not seem to go away anytime soon regardless of whether Mr. Obama and Mr. Sevele made history.
Our hopes cannot be satisfied by superficial political gestures. We must have real changes. Everyone should be held accountable for what they do whether one is in the United States of America or the Kingdom of Tonga. Actions speak louder than mere clever phrases and catchy political advertisements. Both events (the elevation of a commoner as our Prime Minister and the election of Mr. Barak Obama, an African American who is half white) are truly significance. One cannot discount their historical importance. Historical events do not solve problems or guarantee changes. My lowly opinion of these so-called changes is nothing more than window dressing.
Yes, Tonga and the USA may have something in common in their leaders, but these leaders also share the old political necessity of maintaining the status quo. I wish both men the best. If the last few years were an indication of changes to come because of these men, Mr. Obama may have better success in calling himself a white man since his mother was Caucasian than the kingdom's attempt for democracy without changing her constitution.
I'm just saying. But, I know no one listens anyway.
TamaFoa