Dear Editor – I wish to echo some of our concerns as landowners of west Rennell about the Amos Teikagei’s illegal logging operation on Rennell island, which brings a lots of problems to our communities instead of developments.
The struggle of the genuine landowners of Rennell Island (West Rennell especially) with the illegal logging operation and the criminal offences committed by some ignorant loggers on the island was of a deep concern for the local communities of Rennell Island.
The current logging operation of Amos Teikagei on west Rennell is obviously conducted on several plots of lands that is outside of their logging concession area.
However, the fascinating thing is that, the landowners of west Rennell actually raised their complaint to the local police in the Island (Rennell); the police compiled thick reports concerning these conflicting issues and sent them over to the police headquarters in Honiara.
Sadly, those at the Police headquarters in Honiara never act on these reports.
Such non-response from police headquarters in Honiara had led some of the frustrating landowners to take the law into their own hands.
However, this dilemma was once exposed by a reliable source that the illegal and the criminal cases committed by logging operation on Rennell was not addressed by the police because certain high ranking police officers were actively soliciting the logging companies and facilitating their illegal and unsustainable activities in the island, some high ranking police officers were actually receiving huge cash of money (bribe) from the loggers.
We have known of one senior police officer (named) and are currently working on filing a case against him and the logging company Samlimsam.
Just recently there was team of police investigators sent over to Rennell Island to deal with certain cases that were committed by the land owners against the illegal logging company.
It was very surprising why the police at the head office in Honiara have not responded to the first report sent to them, but were very quick to send officers when the case was against landowners.
We are deeply concerned about these self-serving practices by those prominent police officials because this is the same kind of exercise that once crippled Solomon Island’s economy and devastated our happy isles.
We appealed to the Royal Solomon Island police Force and other responsible authorities to deal seriously with those corrupted individuals (including the logging company) because they are entertaining the same practices that once destroy our beloved nation.
Smith Tekiou Sauika
Tigoa, West Rennell
