COMMUNICATION and Aviation minister Peter Shanel Agovaka has asked for justice to be served – refer to your lead story on page 3 Issue No. 6668.
Fine!
So let’s dissect the minister’s dealings within the ministry.
Mr Agovaka, through Permanent Secretary Moses Virivolomo and ministry’s tender board, awarded a contract to his son-in-law Stephen Wa’ako, my nephew.
He is married to the minister’s daughter. Is this not corruption?
In 2015/16, whilst we were at a conference in Singapore, we have to arrange to fly Mr Agovaka’s children from Taiwan to Singapore and we have to pay for their one-week holiday in Singapore.
Mr Agovaka demanded that I and PS Virivolomo pay for everything. Is this not abuse of power and pure corruption?
A company owned by the Attorney General’s wife supplied toilet paper and other items to the Airport management.
Is this not the use of influence and power to award such acontract?
PS Virivolomo knows this too well but he decided to remain quiet and allowed such abuse to proceed.
These are public knowledge within the Aviation Department.
There are other contracts in the airport that I do not want to dwell on, which if I do, will open up a can of worm, something that I do not want to do.
For the information of the public, the decision to suspend me was made on a purported Air Services Agreement trip to the Republic of Taiwan in May this year.
The delegation was led by Mr Agovaka, Attorney General James Apaniai and PS Virivolomo.
There were no reps from MFAET, CAASI or Solomon Airlines.
This was the first ever trip that was undertaken without Aviation experts in the field of air services agreement with airline operational requirements.
The trip was partly funded by the Taiwanese government.
The trip was arranged by Minister Agovaka purposely for personal interests in order to participate in his daughter’s graduation in Taiwan.
This was a sightseeing trip, and even the PS put on his facebook page pictures of them visiting cultural sites.
I don’t know why the Attorney General was included in the trip because he has nothing to discuss in the agreement.
All documentation was done in Honiara and for him to go is a waste of public funds and he knows this too well.
The learned Attorney General, on one of CAASI Board meetings in Brisbane, asked me to make sure that the meeting falls on a certain date in January so that he could take his wife and son to be accommodated in Brisbane whilst they are on their way to participate in a church conference in Sydney.
The Minister of Aviation Mr Agovaka is self-righteous here.
I warned to remind him that “BE SURE YOUR SIN WILL FIND YOU OUT”.
Do not cover yourself like the Scribes and the Pharisees did in the Good Old Book, the HOLY BIBLE.
I also wish to call for justice to be served at the political level.
There are certain ministers in the current government who are more honorable than you Mr Agovaka.
My request is for the three of you to look into a mirror and see for yourself who you are.
I am prepared Mr Agovaka and as you said no one is above the law and I will see that nothing will jeopardize my integrity.
As I have said in my response to your five-page letter, all allegations as stated in the Draft Audit Report are flawed and liars and I can prove that to you.
The Attorney General has done a marvelous job in manipulating legal terms in the law to suit your liking and his lack of understanding of aviation matters.
Mr Agovaka, you lied to CABINET about CAASI’s financial issue, that CAASI has no money, has not done its budgetary processes for approval by Parliament.
I stand here to correct you minister that your PS lied to you.
I have done my part but he chose to do otherwise.
So do not blame me, this is the Attorney General and PS Virivolomo’s way of doing things, that is the budget to be controlled by the PS.
The action taken by the Attorney General, James Apaniai is also illegal; he has no power to do what he was doing.
The power to conduct such action is vested with the PS, MOFT and the Minister of Finance.
I understand Minister Agovaka that your team has enjoyed the Taiwan sightseeing trip so that you can attend your daughter’s graduation and the air service agreement trip is just a cover-up.
My view of you three delegates is summed up in the following: “YOU THREE ARE CANNOT BE TRUSTED”.
I will stand by this view which was uttered by some of my overseas colleague in an International forum.
The Attorney General stated to me in one of his emails, “THAT YOUR ACTION DOES NOT REFLECT YOU”. I will also advice you of the same.
I call on Mr Agovaka to clear the air in regard to the contract he awarded to his son-in-law.
Remember he is my nephew.
The learned Attorney General to do the same and PS Virivolomo to advise the public of those who he awarded contracts to at the airport.
I will not accept that they have met the procurement procedures. What I know is that all those contracts were awarded on vested interest.
By GEORGE SATU
Suspended Civil Aviation director
Honiara
