Opinion

Sooner or later

Saturday 5 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, As far as I am concerned, I am not the least bit interested to learn how TCI formulates and justifies its charges. At the end of the day the telecommunications industry in the Cook Islands comprises of one player, that being TCI, which makes it a monopoly. This is my interest and what […]

E reo akameitakianga

Saturday 5 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, It is with a thankful heart and a rejoicing spirit that I would like to express my sincere grateful appreciation to the following people (or persons) who, as a result of an accident on Saturday February 19, 2011, comforted and prayed over me in my time of desperation as I struggled for life. […]

Bird survives tree trimming

Saturday 5 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Yesterday (Friday) I received a phone call from TM: “We are trimming trees in Upper Tupapa and found a young native bird sitting on a branch. Could you come and get it so we can cut the tree?” I assumed the bird was a Kakaia chick (White Tern), and they have been fed […]

Land today, road tomorrow

Saturday 5 March 2011 | Published in Smoke Signals

“Wake up landowners of Rarotonga!” shouts a smoke signaller. “Minister Teariki Heather’s explanation [see yesterday’s front page article Widening Explained] for why government is taking soil from the roadsides is deliberate obfuscation for stealing the land from under your feet. If anyone bothers to check, you will find that half the soil is being removed […]

Kata - March 5, 2011

Saturday 5 March 2011 | Published in Kata

Kata - March 4, 2011

Friday 4 March 2011 | Published in Kata

Fishing company denies 'on-selling'

Friday 4 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Your headline and article in Tuesday’s press by Florence Syme-Buchanan about fishing licences for NCIFC contained many seriously misleading errors which can easily have been researched properly by the writer. A most serious accusation is that NCIFC ‘on-sold’ licences for ‘big profits’ more than what MMR were charging. This was a very specific […]

Vulgar and disgusting

Friday 4 March 2011 | Published in Smoke Signals

Dear Editor, I write in regard to Ken Kingsbury’s question of February 23, Where’s all the good music? You are very right Ken. Where’s all the good music indeed? I do wonder what some song writers are thinking about when writing the lyric to a song. One song that has a very catchy tune caught […]

Could local net be free?

Friday 4 March 2011 | Published in Smoke Signals

Our internet link to the outside world takes place via satellite and Telecom Cook Islands CEO Jules Maher says these satellite services are expensive (see his letter to the editor yesterday). A smoke signaller makes a suggestion: “Why not allow all internet transmission within Rarotonga to be free to TCI customers and only charge once […]

Kata - March 3, 2011

Thursday 3 March 2011 | Published in Kata

How much was 'scalped'?

Thursday 3 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Through your newspaper I think the public has every right to learn more about the royalties that were obtained by local middle men for foreign fishing fleets which were licensed to fish in our country’s waters. The first has to do with those involved in this rort whereby a sizeable chunk of the […]

Recycled rubbish should go to NZ

Thursday 3 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, We are really pleased to see the kerbside collection of recyclables happening again. Now the community can separate their recyclables from their general waste and know that they will remain separated. We are hopeful that efforts are being made to send those recyclables to New Zealand. We believe that recyclables should be sent […]

Tereora barrier removed

Thursday 3 March 2011 | Published in Smoke Signals

The road crossing barrier between Tereora College and the Turamatuitui store in Nikao has been removed due to the number of accidents that have occurred at the barrier since it was erected some four years ago. Police inspector Tere Patia says that around five accidents have occurred at the barrier crossing which was initially installed […]

Time to open up telecommunications

Wednesday 2 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, The other day I received my household’s Telecom bill for the past two months of telecommunications usage. What really concerned me about the TCI bill was the fact that almost $400 of this $500 bill related to the usage of the internet by myself and four, school aged children during the past two […]

Kata - March 2, 2011

Wednesday 2 March 2011 | Published in Kata

It could be huge

Wednesday 2 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, This is a thank you to the people of Aitutaki from an American flyfisherman. Kia Orana and meitaki for sharing your island. Like many of you, I am a fisherman. I like to catch and eat fish. You can use the spear, the hand line and the net. I use the fly rod. […]

Play fair

Wednesday 2 March 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Congratulations to Telecom for their spin on Broadband. Great news for the small user – who will get “hooked” and then have to pay excess charges. But what about the larger user – who continue to be penalised. What is this claim by Telecom “more you buy, the lower the unit cost”? Let’s […]

'Give the new government a chance'

Monday 28 February 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

“Doreen Boggs’ opinion is her own – she does not speak for all Cook Islanders!” a smoke signaller writes to TXT188 in response to her letter to the editor last week. “Sir Geoff has made some mistakes – he’s human just like all of us. I reckon that he will be an awesome Speaker [of […]

'Clothes maketh the man'

Monday 28 February 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, I write to contribute to the debate about the dress of the parliamentarians because as minor as it is, it points to bigger concerns as the voters hope for a fresh start. There is value in the attitudes of both George Maggie Angene and Tangata Vavia but there is also an opportunity in […]

Kata - February 28, 2011

Monday 28 February 2011 | Published in Kata