The New Malaita Executive Government under the leadership of Premier Martin Fini vows to remove the Auki Communique
THE Auki Communique, long regarded as the signature policy of the MARA administration and a stumbling block to economic development on Malaita, is to be shelved, sources within the new administration have confirmed.
The removal of the non-legal document will be included in a raft of initiatives under consideration by Premier Martin Fini’s new government.
“Yes, the removal of the Auki Communique is on the agenda. That document serves no useful purpose except to lock up Malaita and its resources from beneficial economic development through investment.
“We will shelve it. This will signal that Malaita will be open to investors from everywhere. The people Malaita need development and as their representative government we will facilitate it,” the sources within the new administration said yesterday.
Premier Fini’s ministerial team was sworn in on Tuesday.
Among the initiatives being aggressively pursued are the urgency for the redesign and construction of Fiu Bridge as well as the tar-sealing of Auki township roads.
The MARA government, under the leadership of Daniel Suidani, blocked both projects and rejected the USD5 million Fiu Bridge project because a Chinese engineering company was the winning bidder.
The Fiu Bridge project is funded by the World Bank.
It is understood a team from the new Malaita Provincial Government will visit Honiara soon to discuss ways of fast-tracking the development of both projects, which are being regarded by the new administration as priority projects.
Meanwhile the new government has raised concerns about Suidan’s advisor, Celsius Talifilu, who continues to speak on behalf of the Non-Executive.
“Celsius has no authority to poke his nose into the affairs of the new government. He does not have the authority to speak on behalf of the Non-Executive because even his recruitment is illegal, one minister said.
“He should now take the back seat and do something useful instead of using the social media to attack the new government. He and MARA have done the biggest disservice to the people of Malaita in the last three years they were in office. That’s the legacy they have left behind,” the minister said.
By Alfred Sasako
