THE Opposition is right.
The silence coming from the Office of the Prime Minister on its questionable handling of certain issues is truly deafening.
So much so for a government that assumes power on the platform of change.
Take the Skyline saga for instance.
There have been questions raised about the genuineness of this paper company.
These were in light of the unbelievable promises the company’s directors made when they first arrived here.
They promised to rehabilitate Honiara International Airport and upgrade the road from Henderson to the city.
To fund such projects would cost millions of dollars.
The question is, is Skyline a donor or investor?
If they are an investor as they claimed to be, no one would believe they would put their money into non-profitable projects.
The Prime Minister’s Office should know this unless they chose to deliberately ignore the signs.
In the excitement of things, the Prime Minister’s Office decided to engage Skyline to build 5,000 homes for public servants in the next four years.
A project of this size would no doubt run into millions, if not billions, of dollars. Where would Skyline get the money to build the homes?
In Fiji where they arrived since last year, Skyline has nothing to show for despite making similar promises to the government and people there.
So how do we expect them to build 5,000 homes here when they have not event started a project in Fiji?
Skyline’s director Jason Liu Tao does not behave like a genuine investor. Any multi-million dollar investor would not leave a hotel without checking out and settling his bill.
Yet, that’s exactly what Tao did with Heritage Park Hotel in Honiara.
It was only when the Solomon Star exposed the unpaid hotel bill that Tao’s Fiji-based partner returned to Honiara and settled part of the $87,000 hotel bill.
Such behaviour should signal to the Prime Minister’s Office that they may be dealing with the wrong people.
Despite all the questions raised about this Asian paper company, the Prime Minister’s Office chose to remain silent.
Not only that but they continue to engage with its director.
Another issue of concern is the reported $14,000 the Special Secretary to the Prime Minister incurred for occupying a motel room in Honiara during the month of July.
The Prime Minister’s Office claimed the room was booked to allow the special secretary to write the Prime Minister’s independence speech.
Is this government serious in managing the nation’s meagre financial resources? Didn’t the special secretary have an office to work from?
And does it take a whole month to write a speech?
No, things simply didn’t add up.
Solomon Islanders deserve better than the deafening silence and lack of accountability that are coming from the Office of the Prime Minister.
The PM’s Press Secretariat needs to do more than what it is doing now.
Solomon Islanders want to hear honest explanations from their government, not silence.
For silence can be admittance of guilt.
