Results for Law

The Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika has adjourned for two weeks and will resume on Monday, December 7.

The Tonga Government Procurement Committee, whose primary job is to ensure Government is procuring goods at a reasonable price and of appropriate quality, was left in the dark when Cabinet made the decision to purchase the MV Princess Ashika ferry from Fiji in April earlier this year, the Ashika Inquiry was told on Friday.

Hundreds of people filled the Fa'onelua Convention Centre for the first public viewing of the MV Princess Ashika wreckage video at 4:30 pm on Friday, November 13, pushing through the doors to get seats while others sat on the floor, while many more waited outside the gates for a second screening.

A 70 year old passenger who survived the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika but lost his wife and young daughter, told the Royal Commission of Inquiry this morning that during the fatal voyage he had asked Captain Maka Tuputupu to return to Nuku'alofa after seeing water coming through the ramp on the cargo deck.

A Marine Officer who surveyed the MV Princess Ashika vessel on July 2 the day after its arrival in Nuku'alofa, told the Ashika Inquiry today that the ferry was not seaworthy and was dangerous to the public due to the widespread corrosion that invaded the entire vessel.

Tangimana Lemoto (25) the first survivor to give testimony at the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika this morning told of water forging through the cargo hull causing vehicles to move below deck. The vessel then rocked intensively from side to side before sinking before midnight on August 5.

Fiji Marine Survey Certificates issued on the MV Princess Ashika in 2009 confirmed there were increasing safety concerns from the Fiji Marine Board and Fiji International Safety Administration on the deteriorating condition of the vessel.

A thorough survey of the MV Princess Ashika was not carried out before it was purchased by the Tongan Government, the Managing Director of Shipping Corporation of Polynesia Ltd., John Jonesse, told the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika, this morning, November 3.

Paul Karalus the former Minister of Transport who resigned on July 11, six days after the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika on August 5 will give evidence on December 14 at the Royal Commission of Inquiry, Nuku'alofa.