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Counterfeit $50 notes circulating in Rarotonga, warns local banks

Businesses and the public are being warned to remain vigilant after counterfeit notes have been found circulating in Rarotonga.

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Parliament Select Committee recommends withdrawal of controversial Cryptocurrency Bill

The special select committee looking into the Tainted Cryptocurrency Recovery Bill 2023 has recommended that the controversial Bill be withdrawn from Parliament.

Departure tax drop considered

Reducing departure tax has been the subject of recent budget talks says Finance Minister Wilkie Rasmussen. During Parliament yesterday the Opposition Party again raised concern about travellers being put off by the $55 tax introduced last April. Akaoa MP Teariki Heather asked government when it would look to reduce the tax. Rasmussen admitted a lot […]

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Demos force Ngatangiia run-off

A group of Democratic Party supporters in Ngatangiia will attempt to hold a run-off for candidacy despite their plea to the party committee being turned down. Yesterday party president Sean Willis said he received a letter from committee chairman Tutai Purua stating that Sir Terepai Maoate’s candidacy for the election still stands. But candidate-hopefuls Mann […]

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WHAT BSL RECIPIENTS SAY:

At a time when the Aitutaki business community needed some sort of boost to their businesses to help alleviate the economic downturn which we all had been suffering the past two to three years, the business support loan scheme came as a welcoming sign of support from the government to the outer islands. We as […]

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BSL FACT BOX:

– The $550,000 fund provided loans to 21 businesses – 20 of them in the outer islands – Maximum loan amount $30,000 – Repayment of soft loan BCI is three per cent interest over five years – 10 tourism, 8 retail and three trade businesses received loans – BSL recipients spent $248,000 on refinancing existing […]

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Angene in Parliament

Cook Islands Party Tupapa-Maraerenga election candidate George Maggie Angene visited Parliament yesterday to acquaint himself better with the roles of an MP. It’s a rare occurrence for election hopefuls to take such a proactive approach – but even rarer to see Angene in a suit and tie. The local builder, traded in the trademark black […]

National

Law drafted to kill Toa deal

Finance Minister Wilkie Rasmussen has revealed government actually drafted a law last year which could have been used to ‘legislate out of existence’ the $5.16 million deal to purchase Toa Petroleum. Cabinet had considered taking the law to Parliament before opting instead to enter into settlement negotiations with the company he said. During Parliament on […]

National

Campaign 'blinded people': Sir Terepai

Former Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Sir Terepai Maoate has admitted the extensive public campaign against government by Triad Pacific Petroleum halted plans to nationalise the fuel industry. From December 2008 onwards, Vaile pursued the public campaign, which included full page advertisements in CI News, against the fuel farm scheme. During parliament yesterday, Sir […]

National

No conflict of interest in loans

Two legal opinions obtained by the Audit Office say conflict of interest cannot be substantiated against former finance minister Sir Terepai Maoate and his son, Aitutaki MP Terepai Maoate Junior for receiving business support loans last year. A new audit report tabled just last month alleges the pair had a conflict of interest in their […]

National

Tempers flare over Toa

Tempers flared when the hard questions on Toagate were put to former Deputy Prime Minister Sir Terepai Maoate in Parliament yesterday. Opposition MP Norman George asked the disgraced MP to provide evidence of his claim that the public wanted government to nationalise the fuel industry to bring fuel prices down. Acting speaker John Tangi had […]

National

7s squad named to prepare

The two-day inaugural CITC Constitution Cup sevens tournament not only showcased the wealth of local rugby talent but also seconded as the national trials. A squad of 27 players has been selected to train and prepare for possible selection into the national team. The local squad will play the best of New Zealand and Australia […]

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Mangaia's harbour takes shape

Still, six years after the harbour was devastated in a cyclone, the harbour remains non-operational. Mangaia MP Winton Pickering said that the island’s lack of a proper harbour makes inter-island shipping a “dangerous” venture. He added that it stands in the way of his plan to “resurrect Mangaia as a centre of commercial agriculture”. “Agriculture […]

National

Pacific Resort in awards final

Pacific Resort Aitutaki & Pacific Resort Rarotonga have been named as finalists in the 2010 HM Awards for Hotel & Accommodation Excellence, with winners due to be announced in Sydney on September 3. Pacific Resort Aitutaki is a region finalist in the “South Pacific Property of the Year” category, while Pacific Resort Rarotonga is acknowledged […]

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Dog causes bike driver to fall off

On Friday morning, a male driver struck a stray dog on Sanitorium Rd, causing him to fall off his bike. He sustained injuries to the left side of his body and a scratch on the side of his head. Police are still investigating the cause of a fallen power pole at Tepuka. They believe a […]

National

'Working' holiday for Warratahs

The Warratahs have arrived on Rarotonga and are gearing up to play two shows this week. Barry Saunders, Nik Brown and Sid Limbert flew in this weekend to reunite with their drummer, local Mo Newport, who otherwise commutes to New Zealand to play gigs. Their faithful production engineer, or ‘sound man’ Lincoln Mail, came with […]

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24 CI graduates recognised

Crown Beach was abuzz on Sunday evening, as 24 Cook Islands students were recognised as Master’s graduates. Five local artists – Loretta Reynolds, Joan Gragg, Eruera Nia, Kay George and Andrea Eimke – accepted their Master’s degrees in Art and Design. David Teata and Michael Tavioni received postgraduate diplomas in art and design. Another 17 […]

National

Audit reports to go public

Audit reports, such as the review on the Toagate scandal, will now be available for public perusal at the Ministry of Justice and selected local shops. From tomorrow they will also be accessible online on the Audit Office website www.auditoffice.gov.ck The Audit Office aims to improve public access to this information which includes copies of […]

National

Commission of inquiry unlikely

Government is not keen on ordering a Commission of Inquiry into the Toagate scandal according to Acting Prime Minister and Finance Minister Wilkie Rasmussen. The minister was responding to Opposition MP Norman George’s enquiry on the issue in Parliament yesterday. “There’s already been an extensive and expensive audit probe conducted and we are not at […]

National

Arts conference opens in Raro

The Pacific Arts Association 10th International symposium opened yesterday morning at Crown Beach and continued into the late evening. Artists, scholars and students from across the region and all over the world flocked to the conference, which yesterday kicked off with speeches from two keynote speakers acting chief executive of Te Papa Tongarewa Michelle Hippolite […]

National

Aitutaki clinches Constitution Cup

The Aitutaki sevens rugby team said they were here to win the inaugural CITC Sevens Constitution Cup – and they did so in emphatic style on Saturday. The team skillfully worked their way to the grand finals and faced off against competition favourites the Avatiu Eels. The game was tit for tat as both sides […]

National

Te Fuinga o Niva drum it up again!

After a week of Cook Islands dancing and singing – it was the drummers’ turn to shine on Saturday for the final Te Maeva Nui tangi kaara (drumming) competition. Six teams in total competed in this section with the reigning 2009 tangi kaara champions Te Fuinga o Niva once again beating their way to another […]

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