Tonga's Ports Authority manager, Commander Lupeti Vi, this morning told the Ashika inquiry that it was not his responsibility to stop the vessel from sailing.
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Results for Parliament
Wednesday 16 December 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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Monday 14 December 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Women and children passengers were trapped inside the enclosed passengers cabin shouting and crying out while holding on to their children as the Princess Ashika capsized, said a surviving crewman who managed to get out alive.
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Friday 11 December 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Tongan parliament will close quietly late this year and reopen early next year without the usual fanfare, as members continue to deliberate the report of the Constitution and Electoral Commission.
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Friday 11 December 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Auditor General Pohiva Tu'ionetoa, a member of a Government Procurement Committee told the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the Princess Ashika on December 10, that in May it became known to the committee that Cabinet had made a decision on April 23 to buy the vessel, and a contract was already signed.
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Tuesday 8 December 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika published its Interim Report on November 27, 2009, stating it needs to hear more witnesses and consider other evidence.
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Monday 23 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Monday 23 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Captain Viliami Makahokovalu Tuputupu gave evidence on November 19 and said he knew the MV Princess Ashika was unseaworthy but sailed anyway, because he relied on information from the Marine and Ports Division to state the vessel was not good to operate, but at the same time he never believed it would sink on August 5.
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Monday 16 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Monday 16 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
There was nothing extraordinary about the weather conditions in the area where the MV Princess Ashika was sailing on its final voyage on August 5, 2009, and it was fairly normal conditions in Tonga, confirmed the Director of Meteorology for the Ministry of Transport 'Ofa Fa'anunu on November 13.
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Monday 16 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Monday 16 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A marine officer has testified that he informed the former Minister of Transport, Paul Karalus, that the MV Princess Ashika was not a good vessel after its first sailing on July 4.
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Thursday 12 November 2009
2 comments
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The eagerly awaited final report of Tonga's Constitutional and Electoral Commission released this week, contains some 80 recommendations on how to structure a new system of government for Tonga. While there are no surprises, the Commission does voice a concern over an apparent lack of understanding of its aims and the actual contents of its reports by some of the members of the House, who will be trusted with making the final decision on the new structure. By Pesi Fonua
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Thursday 12 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Wednesday 11 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A Senior Marine Engineer who surveyed the MV Princess Ashika vessel in Nuku'alofa on July 2 said he told the Acting Director for the Marine Division on numerous occasions that vessel was in an unfit condition, and on one occasion he specifically asked him to stop it from sailing.
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Tuesday 10 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Tuesday 10 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Large holes were revealed on the side of the MV Princess Ashika in a range of pictures released by the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the sinking of the MV Princess Ashika yesterday, November 9.
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Monday 9 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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Friday 6 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Important testimony by John Jonesse, Managing Director of the Shipping Corporation of Polynesia Ltd., was cut short today when the SCP board cut off his access to corporate legal defence, thereby forcing an adjournment of the Ashika ferry inquiry.
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Friday 6 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Final Report of the Constitutional and Electoral Commission on a proposed new system of government for Tonga to be introduced next year was presented to HM King George Tupou V at the Palace, yesterday morning, 5 November 2009.
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Thursday 5 November 2009
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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.
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