Smoke Signals
On 'Travel Duty': Yeah, right!
Saturday 17 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
That was the gist of an interesting auto response email message from a person overseas who obviously likes to give the impression that travel is a difficult task. A smoke signaller quipped: “That’s a new piece of jargon in officialese, which our public service will no doubt adopt…’I will be on ‘travel duty’ from blah […]
Commissioner's appointment irks
Wednesday 14 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“What a complete shambles the appointment of the new Public Service Commissioner has turned out to be,” a smoke signaller writes. “In my opinion the Prime Minister and Cabinet did not select on merit but looked at this from a close family and party connections. What happened to the PM’s speech about the promises that […]
Good Sorts, Raro-style
Tuesday 13 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
After a spate of burglaries hitting the headlines, it’s great to read some positive news such as this sent in by Heather Brannigan who is visiting Rarotonga from New Zealand: “A holiday that could have ended in tears – didn’t. Something precious was lost, found and returned. A big special thank you to the staff […]
Chasing millions here
Saturday 10 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
An account set up in the Cook Islands designated the Baby Mama Trust was mentioned during the trial of Texas banker Allen Stanford, who this week was convicted of running a US$7 billion Ponzi scheme. The jury’s verdict clears the way for the United States government to seize US$330 million of funds that had been […]
Taxing airlines a 'bad decision'
Friday 9 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“Targeting airlines by now charging them income tax is another knee jerk tax reaction from finance minister Mark Brown and his tax advisors,” a smoke signaller writes. “Hasn’t this government learnt from the withholding tax mess? Now the airlines will increase their fares to meet this extra cost. Who will suffer? The little people, of […]
Rarotonga's big mushroom
Wednesday 7 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
An impressive mushroom-shaped cloud had a number of people scrambling for their cameras to snap a picture as it towered over Rarotonga recently. This photo, sent in by the same smoke signaller who submitted last week’s cute picture of a friendly kitten and piglet, shows the cloud mushrooming over Upper Tupapa. We asked Met Service […]
Elvis and Apii 'out of tune'
Tuesday 6 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“Elvis Puna and Apii the Meter Man are singing a different song when it comes to renewable energy,” a smoke signaller quips. “While the travelling PM is overseas warbling (unrealistically) 100% green, Te Aponga’s bandleader is out of tune with his 6%. And by hogging all the big installations for himself and government and limiting […]
Nations can't keep borrowing
Saturday 3 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
A smoke signaller writes: “The wise Chinese philosopher Confucius says ‘man with hand in other man’s pocket not feeling himself today’. Forty years ago that was a terrible giggly school kid joke; now it comes back to mind as a terrible reality worldwide as nations live on credit. Just how long can you have your […]
Don Dorrell is right about the rocks
Friday 2 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
Responding to letters to the editor over the past few days ‘Avatiu rock wall ‘dangerous’ and ‘Rock wall is in breach of law’ a smoke signaller writes: “Don Dorrell’s expert comments are true about the rock wall at the Avatiu harbour. The key question is, are Bim Tou [Ports Authority general manager] and Mike Henry […]
Consider the landing fees Kia Orana Air will pay
Thursday 1 March 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
In response to yesterday’s front page article ‘International airport land tenders rejected’ a smoke signaller writes: “Joe Ngamata, CEO of the Airport Authority says ‘We are going to negotiate with the interested parties to plot the best way forward’. Let’s hope that the Authority’s ‘bidding war’ for a section of land between the Air New […]
Is this another of those deals?
Wednesday 29 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“So, Air New Zealand wants the Cook Islands to subsidise its increased fuel costs on the Los Angeles and Sydney routes?”a smoke signaller writes. “One wonders how it is recovering its increased fuel costs on its other routes? How is any other airline recovering its increased fuel costs, or any other increased costs? One would […]
Promote Rarotonga as 'a stopover'
Tuesday 28 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“This massive subsidy to Air New Zealand [$12.5 million] is certainly a talking point in the Cook Islands where the people are finding it hard to come to terms with such a sum to attract tourists,” a smoke signaller writes. “From Sydney to Rarotonga seems a reasonably sensible subsidy given the population of Australia and […]
Koru lounge or staff pay?
Saturday 25 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
A smoke signaller writes: “It is actually quite devious of the high-ranking CISNOC defenders to let us know coincidentally that the Air NZ Koru Club members of the team have repaid the money they took for their memberships. The treasurer should be the one reporting this, but once again it’s part of the make-it-up-as-we-go spin […]
Love birds, more like it!
Friday 24 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“Torrid? Is that what Wilkie Rasmussen and Henry Puna call it? Ha!” quips a smoke signaller after predictions that this would be the nature of Parliamentary debates between the opposition Democratic Party and ruling Cook Islands Party. “These two guys are as torrid as two love birds on the Rarotonga Golf Club course!” An on […]
Tighter rein needed in the House
Thursday 23 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
A smoke signaller writes: “It sounds like Parliament has become a bit of a shambles without the Speaker Sir Geoffrey Henry, who is overseas on medical leave. He would have kept a tighter rein on procedure and respect than it sounded like on Wednesday. How is it that vocal MPs on one day, like Norman […]
Tough times, not markets, closing stores
Wednesday 22 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“Night markets are not responsible for the closures of ma and pa stores,” a smoke signaller writes in response to yesterday’s smokie ‘Markets closing shops?’ “They are indicative of the current tough economic climate experienced by a lot of businesses on the island. The night markets are occurring as a response to customer market demand […]
What's the Air New Zealand deal?
Tuesday 21 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
Saturday’s somewhat depressing news headline ‘Airline subsidy rises to $12.5m’ prompted one smoke signaller to ask government to reveal what exactly is in the contract deal with Air New Zealand. “And is there a ceiling or limit to the actual monetary level of exposure?” Another signaller writes: “After reading your airline subsidy story on Saturday, […]
Leadership posturing is just opportunism
Monday 20 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
Norman George’s posturing for leadership of the Democratic Party is pretty low. For many his announcement on Saturday will be socially and culturally offensive. It’s just opportunism of him to be making political capital out of Robert Wigmore’s illness. It says more about Norman’s character than anything else, and hopefully Wilkie and the others will […]
When will the rot stop at CISNOC?
Thursday 16 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“The rot at the Cook Islands Sports and National Olympic Committee continues,” a smoke signaller writes in response to yesterday’s p7 article ‘Special CISNOC meeting postponed’. “Payments of over $9000 of per diems to Sir Geoff and Rosie in Noumea and over $4000 for Koru Club fees in my opinion is downright daylight robbery. The […]
'No job losses' sure to be bunkum
Saturday 11 February 2012 | Published in Smoke Signals
“Navy Epati should be promoted from Public Service Commissioner to head of the Prime Minister’s Office so that he can dictate everything,” a smoke signaller writes in response to yesterday’s lead CINews article ‘We are not in a crisis’. “His blather in Friday’s media statement about the Public Sector functional review is the sort of […]