In a New Year resolution, the Tonga Ports Authority is taking firm action to ensure that old vessels berthed at the Queen Salote Wharf are safe and sound and to remove those that are not.

According to the Port Authority, the vessels that remain berthed at the Queen Salote Wharf are billed monthly. There is no law setting a time limitation on how long vessels are berthed at the wharf but the Ports Authority does have the authority to order a vessel to be hauled and disposed of elsewhere if it is not safe or if it is considered to be on the verge of sinking.

The Ports Authority have confirmed they are continuing work on cases to clear up old debts and that a liquidation action is the final and most expensive step taken against a debtor if they continued to ignore their debts.

Fung Shing

A recent court case brought by the Ports Authority concerned a vessel belonging to the Fung Shing group of companies, which was berthed at the Queen Salote Wharf for a long time. It was found to be not safe and the owners were told to haul the ship from port for disposal. A Ports Authority Port vessel did the job with the consent of the owners but this month the Ports Authority took legal action against the owners to recover the $15,000 cost of the service.

The action was successful. David Garrett of Garrett and Associates law firm representing the creditor, Tonga Ports Authority, said that they submitted an application to the Supreme Court for a liquidation order against Fung Shing Company because they had ignored a Statutory Demand notice that was served on them on July 24, 2008, to pay the debt.

This resulted in the Fung Shing Supermarket at Fasi Moe Afi being ordered to be close down on January 19 by the Nuku'alofa Supreme Court.

The Fung Shing Company then applied to overturn the liquidation, and their application was heard in chambers. Information from the Supreme Court was that Fung Shing had since paid their debt and the supermarket was reopened immediately.

Riot victims

Fung Shing is a family-owned business of Raymond and Ellen Yu and their children. They are naturalised Tongan-Chinese who have been living in Tonga for nearly 20 years.

Several of their businesses including a hotel, a supermarket and a photography shop, went up in smoke and their home was trashed during the riots of November 16, 2006 with their total losses estimated at over $11.7 million pa'anga.

To date they have rebuilt a new $3 million pa'anga multi-purpose building accommodating a supermarket at the former location of the Chinatown Hotel at Fasi mo e Afi.