Friday, March 3rd, 2017
Aebusu and Lolo Tribe dual landowners of Manaoba airport
AFTER a long standing claim of ownership over the Manaoba airport between the Lolo Tribe and Aebusu Tribe, Aebusu Tribe has finally been declared dual landowners this week. This High Court ruling came after a long disputation of ownership by the Lolo Tribe as the sole landowning tribe of Manaoba that has now become null and void. This means, Lolo Tribe and Aebusu Tribe are both (dual) landowners of Manaoba airport. Spokesperson and Secretary of the Aebusu Tribe, George Geusi Maenu’u made a brief statement based on the ruling onRead More
Anticorruption Bills left before Parliament
‘Shelf or Advance?’ THREE Anticorruption Bills are currently before Parliament to deliberate over throughout the latter half of this meeting. In Parliament’s last sitting on Wednesday this week, the Prime Minister Hon Manasseh Sogavare moved a motion of special adjournment to have Parliament stand adjourned until Monday 6 March 2017. So far Parliament has passed 7 Bills (now Acts) (of a total of 10 Bills before the House) in total throughout this meeting. They are; the Town and Country Planning (Amendment) Bill 2016, Land Surveyors Bill 2016, Adoption (Amendment)Read More
Renbel community chief urges police to take action on MPs’ gun ownership
A Renbel Community Chief has urged police to investigate reports that some Members of Parliament are in possession of illegal firearms, saying he is sure the hierarchy of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) is fully aware of who the MPs are. “I know successive police commissioners and the new one know who the politicians are. Why aren’t they doing anything about this,” West Rennell Chief Jonathan Tohuika told Island Sun yesterday. Mr Tohuika’s call comes as new information emerged that high-powered rifles such as M16 might have beenRead More
Gov’t renews provincial government consultant’s $71k fortnightly after-tax salary
THE Government has renewed the contract of an overseas consultant engaged to provide technical assistance to the Provincial Governance Strengthening Programme at an after tax salary of $71,000 a fortnight, documents obtained by Island Sun shows. The six-month extension will cost taxpayers some $776,160 in fixed daily professional fee as well as a daily subsistence allowance of $271,500, according to the contract documents. Momodou Lamin Sawaneh’s contract extension was approved by the Public Service Commission last December. It is effective from January 1 this year, according to the documents. “IRead More
Solomon Islands faces serious deforestation
OVER harvesting of our forest resources is good for our economy but will cause extensive damage to the forestry sector in the future. The country’s economy has survived for decades on forestry resources and now officials are signalling red light as a result of high levels of deforestation. Speaking during the signing of Capacity Development for Sustainable Forest Resource Management Project yesterday, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Forestry and Research Mr Vaeno Vigulu said the country’s forest resource is currently harvested at an unsustainable level posing a possible inclineRead More
Amendments to Adoption laws stop foreigners adopting SI children
THE new amendments to the adoption laws do not allow foreigners to adopt Solomon Islands children although the old Act did allow it The amended 2016 Adoption Bill which Parliament had passed also stipulates the requirements to be more strict and for extra material to be available to the courts in order to decide applications for adoption from non-residents. And most importantly, the courts must be satisfied that there are no other suitable arrangements for the children in Solomon Islands and that the adoption is in the children’s best interests.Read More
JICA and Ministry of Forest seal new project
JAPANESE International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and Ministry of Forest and Research have sealed a five-year Forest Management project. A signing ceremony took place at the Mendana Hotel yesterday between the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Forestry and Research, Mr Vaeno Vigulu, and Resident representative of JICA, Mr Kyoji Mazutani. Mr Mazutani said the project is focusing on capacity development for sustainable forest resources management. He adds that the project is titled, Capacity Development for Sustainable Forest Resource management in Solomon Islands. Mr Mazutani said the Ministry and JICA haveRead More
Market Master denies re-imposing littering penalty
THE Honiara City Council Market Master condemns public rumours concerning penalty charges over littering around the city’s central market compound. There has been rumors from the Honiara Central Market saying the HCC will re-impose the littering charges starting at the central market. However, Mr Jimmy Hanson Riunga, the Market Master and officer overseeing the Market Ordinance, has denied the rumours utterly. “I am not aware about anything as such, maybe they heard from someone but from me I haven’t heard or even in our council’s meeting it was never beenRead More
Six granted bail out of 76 arrests
SIX of the 76 locals arrested in relation to the logging dispute at Vasara logging camp, Rendova, have been granted bail. Five are juveniles and one is an MPA in the Rendova Constituency. The other 70 are being remanded in custody for the next 14 days. Principal Magistrate for Western Province, Mr Jim Botica Seuika, ruled that the other 70 will still be remanded in custody because the situation is tense, and it is also for their own safety. “I have not granted them bail as they will be remandedRead More
76 people arrested over Rendova incident
POLICE Commissioner Mathew Varley has confirmed that 76 people were arrested and have appeared in the Gizo Magistrate Court yesterday. This is in relation to the logging row in Vesara camp Rendova in the Western Province. Mr Varley said six of those 76 people arrested were juveniles. This is a very serious public order incident that was prevented by police. “We worked very hard to make sure that we negotiated a peaceful outcome on this,” Mr Varley said. And when that was not successful and still risk for public safetyRead More