Police ministers in kafuffle over portfolio reshuffle [1]
Sunday, May 20, 2012 - 21:01. Updated on Monday, September 9, 2013 - 18:40.
Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo, the Minister for Finance and National Planning
The recent reshuffling of Ministerial portfolios, another attempt by the Prime Minister, Lord Tu'ivakano to create a more cohesive governing body, has instead splintered his new Cabinet, even before it is officially put into place.
The transfer of the Minister of Police portfolio gave a new minister access to the personal files of the former minister who was overseas.
Now the former Minister of Police has come out saying that it was the new Minister of Police who accessed his personal file document and downloaded his letter. From then onward, the new Minister sent a copy to the Deputy Prime Minister, Hon. Samiu Vaipulu, and somehow the letter found its way to the local press and to the internet.
The latest reshuffling of the Tongan Cabinet is the third since the Prime Minister announced his Cabinet under Tonga's new system of government in January 2011. The upcoming national budget to be introduced on July 1 will officiate the new line-up, some have already taken up their new posts without any formal public announcement.
This latest turmoil in the Tongan Cabinet became public knowledge last week after the letter written by the former Minister of Police Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo was leaked to the press and onto the internet.
Hon. 'Akolo claims that a letter that he had addressed to the Prime Minister, was apparently discovered by the new Minister of Police Hon. Sunia Fili in the former minister's computer at the Ministry of Police.
Hon. 'Akolo was overseas when the reshuffle was made and Hon. Fili took over his position on May 1.
Hon. 'Akolo called a Press Conference on Friday, May 18 to explain his position with regards to what he considered was his personal piece of letter writing, and how it ended up in the public domain and its consequences. He said that after he had written his letter he had decided not to send it to the Prime Minister, and it remained in his ministerial computer in a document file.
Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo said that he composed the letter in March, and he did so because he did not attend a Cabinet retreat held on Pangaimotu in January, when a reshuffled cabinet was discussed.
At the end of April he had to attend an Asian Development Meeting in Manila, and while he was away, on May 1, the Cabinet was reshuffled and Hon. Sunia Fili became the new Minister of Police.
Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo returned to Tonga early in the second week of May, and was surprised when his daughter, who worked in Geneva, e-mailed a copy of his letter, which had been sent to her by a friend.
He said that he called the press conference to make it known that he wrote the letter in March and it was a collection of his personal views on the reshuffle, and that he had not sent the letter to the Prime Minister.
He said that since the leak of his personal files, he had written to the Prime Minister who was on his way to Japan via Chicago.
He had also visited the new Minister of Police and in his presence had deleted his letter. Hon. Sunia Fili had expressed to Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo his dislike with what Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo had said about him in his letter.
Hon. Lisiate 'Akolo said that he had not spoken to any other Cabinet Minister about the leaked document. And he sincerely did not think that he had done anything wrong.