Tongan housing plan, probe into shooting of fishermen, and Samoa to sign deals with international airlines
PM says building houses for Tonga eruption victims has begun
The Tongan Prime Minister says 70 percent of houses needed for victims of the January 15 volcano and tsunami event have been procured, with construction already under way.
That includes construction work being done around Popua, Sopu, Masilamea, Matatoa in Tongatapu and Ta'anga in 'Eua.
Photo: Consulate of the Kingdom of Tonga
Hu'akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni said construction is well under way on 24 houses in Masilamea for the people of 'Atata, and they hope to complete those houses by the end of this month.
Ha'apai construction work is also set to start soon, with plans to complete the houses before Christmas.
Investigation into alleged shooting of fishermen in PNG waters
Papua New Guinea's Defence Force personnel are being investigated after an alleged shooting of Indonesian fishermen.
According to the Post-Courier, an Indonesian boat crew was caught fishing illegally in PNG waters, two weeks ago.
PNG Defence Force Commander Major Mark Goina said all the information from the incident has been sent to the Office of Foreign Affairs.
Samoa due to sign deals with airlines
Samoa is set to sign two Air Services Agreements with two international airlines before the end of the year.
Samoa Observer reports this was revealed by the Minister of Civil Aviation saying he will be flying to Singapore later this month to "seal the deal" with Singapore Airlines and will also line up to sign a similar deal with Emirates Airlines.
"This is air services agreements (ASA) with these two international airlines to service our tourism route for the time being," Olo Fiti Afoa Vaai said.
Olo said this does not mean that they will be issued foreign operating certificates for these two airlines.
"The air service agreement is a bilateral agreement to allow international commercial air transport services between signatories."
Waiver for overstayers in Tonga
Tonga has approved a waiver for overstay fees after requests from overseas communities in the Kingdom who have had visa issues.
The waiver was proposed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and covers all overseas citizens who have been overstaying in Tonga before and during the Covid-19 lockdown.
The waiver will start on September 12 and run until December 12.
All those applying for the waiver have to register with the Tonga Immigration Department.
Warnings issued over overtime non-payment
In American Samoa, politicians are backing Executive Branch employees who have not been paid for overtime.
The lawmakers say non-payment of overtime is a serious and clear violation of federal labour laws and the government could face serious consequences such as hefty fines.
Last week, governor Lemanu Peleti Mauga issued a memorandum telling Executive Branch directors and heads of agencies that it is a legal and moral duty to compensate employees for overtime.
Each director and agency boss is to provide records of the amount of outstanding overtime and compensatory time owed to their employees to the Governor's office.
Lemanu added that if there are problems with paying overtime a director cannot resolve, the Governor's office should be contacted for help.
Dozens of Vanuatu government vehicles confiscated
In Vanuatu, 50 government-registered vehicles have been confiscated by the Police Traffic Department due to road unworthiness.
The Daily Post reports it's the first police operation of its kind, and netted vehicles driven by government ministers, director-generals, department directors and some police officers.
The report said the vehicles did not comply with traffic regulations.
Under regulation, all government vehicles need to pass a road worthiness check every year.
All departments concerned will be fined, while the Public Service Commission has called on them to comply with all the road traffic regulations from now on.
Apiarists converge on Fiji for sustainability course
Training on sustainable beekeeping for both Pacific beekeepers and Government representatives has kicked off in Fiji.
Taking place in the Fijian towns of Nadi and Rakiraki, the six-day intensive course will feature theoretical and practical lessons and knowledge-sharing sessions for 12 participants coming from the Cook Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.
The course aims to develop the capacities of local beekeepers and government officers responsible for beekeeping activities in the Pacific. It will also provide a solid base for developing or updating the countries' existing guidelines on apiculture.
During the course, the participants will receive both theoretical and practical training on topics including queen breeding, honey harvesting and extraction, and honey bottling and marketing.
The course will also explore value-added bee products.