Opinion
No surprise at all
Saturday 9 January 2010 | Published in Smoke Signals
Dear Editor, Reading Tuesday’s (January 5) Cook Islands News regarding the report on our financial situation – it did not surprise me at all. I know I have mentioned in previous letters that our country is broke and relying on borrowed money to stabilise our economy. The politicians have been alerted to the situation time […]
No April Fools' Day joke
Saturday 9 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, I could not believe the headline on Thursday — “PM to cut costs”. I checked to see if I had overslept, so maybe this was already April Fools’ Day. No, it was indeed 7 January all day. But, how will cabinet and their new minister for bean counting cut costs? Okay, not adding […]
Patience and understanding needed
Saturday 9 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor Don Silk must have had a very bad day two days out from Christmas (re his letter in yesterday’s edition of Cook Islands News). Armed to the teeth with his tape recorder, Immigration was going to be his OK Corral whatever it took. As a person from the colonial era and used to […]
What's your point?
Saturday 9 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, I refer to the letter written by Don Silk which appeared in Friday’s issue of the Cook Islands News. As the eldest daughter of the late Richard Chapman I am pleased to confirm that he was indeed a wonderful father to his children. However, as his child, I am not in a position […]
Return our pounamu please
Friday 8 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, My son was part of a New Zealand wedding group having been seduced by romantic tourism advertising and Rarotonga’s idyllic setting. On the 19 December 2009, thieves broke into their accommodation at Island Villas at Muri, rifled through all their property stealing my son’s entire suitcase containing all his belongings including his laptop, […]
Doing desperate things
Friday 8 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, How many don’t know that the sacked maxi-leader attempted a coup of sorts over the long weekend? Maybe there are a few revellers still sleeping it off who don’t know that a ‘vote of confidence’ in Sir Terepai Maoate was circulated by the Ngatangiia MP amongst the remaining Demo MPs and all the […]
Arrogance in the public service
Friday 8 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor We are all aware that not all public servants are dedicated to serving the public. While some certainly do their best to provide the service for which the public pays, there are other petty officials, many of whom have been given authority well beyond their competence, once they get behind a desk surrounded […]
Getting to the bottom of it
Wednesday 6 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, Congratulations to Cook Islands News for the fantastic effort carried out by your small team of dedicated reporters late last year relating to the recent Northern group fishing venture that failed to live up to all its many promises. Your excellent media coverage on this very dubious fishing venture both highlighted and exposed […]
Superannuation fund or national super tax?
Wednesday 6 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, I am so disgusted to finally receive my 2008 (one year later) Cook Islands National Superannuation Fund’s so called “retirement fund” statement last week to see that I had an investment loss deduction of 33.6 percent on my 2008 contribution plus another one percent deduction for insurance. And to make things even juicier, […]
Just get over it sir!
Tuesday 5 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, Sir Terepai Maoate, get over yourself and stop holding the country to ransom! You created a ‘patsy’ for your own political security, but didn’t expect anyone to call out enough! This is what happens when government decides to play a corporate game and try to be the ‘be all’ instead of doing what […]
No witches to hunt for
Tuesday 5 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, With the recent happenings around the cabinet table I was amazed to read the press release of the now reinvented minister, Wilkie Rasmussen. He said that "there will be absolutely no witch-hunt against Sir Terepai Maoate and senior public servants associated with him in the Toa Petroleum matter". Why not, is my question? […]
It takes one to know one
Tuesday 5 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, A smoke signaller accused Wilkie Rasmussen of being a hypocrite because he called the PM naughty names the last time Wilkie was sacked for something. In fact, the signaller called Wilkie the "biggest hypocrite ever in the Cook Islands". You have to wonder if that smokie was sent by a tourist or by […]
Are those chicks cool?
Tuesday 5 January 2010 | Published in Smoke Signals
One Rarotonga resident stocking up for the Christmas long weekend had wondered whether some Christmas supermarket specials might have given buyers more than they bargained for. "The specials for cartons of chicken were put on the floor all day so are they waiting for us to get food poisoning?" she asked.
Out with the old and in with the new
Saturday 2 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, Had some thick-headed politicians observed my letters to the editor concerning the Vaimaanga debacle some years ago, we wouldn’t have been in such chaos nowadays. Those letters were for the government to stay clear of any business dealings. No, my pleas were ignored and now it has turned around to bite the hard-working […]
Smart money on the rebels
Saturday 2 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, At the top of Wednesday’s front page, minister Wilkie Rasmussen said that the Marurai government, Sir Terepai Maoate and the Democratic Party will try to resolve their differences. At the bottom of the same page, the Democratic Party withdrew its support of the Marurai government. Cook Islands News helpfully noted that these are […]
Cook Islanders deserve better
Saturday 2 January 2010 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, As an ex-pat watching this mess unfold with the Cook Islands government, it strikes me how incredibly ridiculous this whole affair is. It’s blatantly obvious how diabolical the circumstances were that led to Sir Terepai Maoate’s sacking. Yet three ministers resign in support of somebody that has fundamentally betrayed his duty of office. […]
Boom boom!
Saturday 2 January 2010 | Published in Smoke Signals
“The island is awash with vehicles emitting loud bass ‘boom boom’ radio sounds all recording 120 decibels and more,” complains a smoke signaller. “It’s a proven medical fact that 110 decibels listened to for more than a minute risks permanent hearing loss. It might be fun now but “listen up out there” because good hearing […]
Same talk, same vision
Thursday 31 December 2009 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, Re Koutu Nui Community Visioning project. And the visioning still goes on after many years of talking about the same issues of good governance, social, environment, economic and culture. It’s time now to move on to more creative and active thinking. The current political turmoil, the increase in crime, and the downturn in […]
Where was the anger?
Thursday 31 December 2009 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor Member of the opposition from Aitutaki Teina Bishop managed to grab a headline by accusing the prime minister of causing instability. This was surely a case of the pot calling the kettle black. Who was it four years ago who abandoned a coalition government to incite a failed coup? There’s nothing wrong with […]
Sunday flights and all that
Thursday 31 December 2009 | Published in Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor, The protest against government for approving the flight scheme highlights several crucial elements that seems to have escaped the media from day one. Those who endorsed the Sunday flight scheme should think twice. Although the message coming across to us appears to be an issue about Sunday, the campaign was always intended to […]
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