Vella Development Company plan for peaceful protest
VELLA Development Company [VDC] – a people’s business entity on Vella Lavella – is calling on the Board of the Copra Export Marketing Authority (CEMA) to stop opening a buying centre on the island until the ownership issues of plantations on the island are sorted.
A VDC spokesperson and retired Magistrate, Ether Lelapitu, told Solomon Star yesterday she and her board had been told that CEMA was planning to open a buying centre on the island next Wednesday.
“CEMA, at the instigation of Commerce Minister Kologeto, wants to takeover Liapari as well as Round Vella plantations and to turn them into family private businesses – something we opposed from the start,” Ms. Lelapitu said.
“Our group will be staging a peaceful protest if the opening goes ahead as planned,” she said.
Ms. Lelapitu said VDC was registered in 1974 and owns 49 per cent of the plantations on Vella Lavella while the remaining 51 per cent was owned by Noel Hudson, a director on the VDC Board, until he died recently.
“Before Mr. Hudson died, he signed over Liapari plantation to VDC. Liapari accounts for 51 per cent of the plantations on Vella Lavella. My board of directors are sorting this out. And this is why we don’t want CEMA to disturb the peaceful transition,” Ms. Lelapitu said.
But a CEMA spokesman denied there were plans to establish a Buying Centre on Vella Lavella.
“There are no plans that as a Board Member, I am aware of,” the spokesman said.
But Ms. Lelapitu said the plan to establish a CEMA Buying Centre on Vella Lavella was announced on radio last week.
CEMA is opening the Buying Centre under Panakasi – a traditional name for a parcel of land that was already within VDC jurisdiction. Because of that, VDC is opposed to any interference by CEMA or anyone else,” Ms. Lelapitu said.
“I am appealing to CEMA to wait until VDC has taken full control of all the plantations on Vella Lavella before we discuss opening a Buying Centre here on our land,” she said.
By Alfred Sasako
