Potential rugby sponsors took priority

NEW ZEALAND – The Prime Minister of Tonga’s decision to cancel his plan to travel from Auckland to Katikati after Tuesday’s horrific crash which killed five Tongan men showed lack of leadership, his critics are saying.

Prime Minister Akilisi Pohiva earlier told New Zealand media he “must” go to Katikati to meet the families and see the deceased.

Pohiva was in New Zealand on his first state visit and he was expected to leave for Tonga today.

Sefita Hao’uli, who coordinates the Tongan RSE workers in New Zealand, said he was eventually informed that Pohiva could not make it to meet the families of the victims.

Pohiva was reportedly scheduled to hold a business meeting with the management of a car yard in South Auckland that evening.

Va’a Talia’uli, the Tongan sales manager at the Henderson business, said they had invited the prime minister because of his role as president of the Tonga Rugby Union.

Talia’uli said the company has sponsored the Manu Samoa rugby team and they wanted to do the same thing for the Tonga ‘Ikaletahi side.

Melino Maka of the Tonga Advisory Council in New Zealand said the prime minister’s decision to skip attending the services for the victims in Katikati was an embarrassment.

He said the tragedy hit the Tongan community hard and while the prime minister was in New Zealand where the incident occurred he made the decision not go there.

However, the Tongan Community Leader in Auckland, Salote Heleta Lilo, said she respected whatever reasons that may have caused the Prime Minister to cancel his travel to Katikati.

“Maybe there was an important commitment for him or he was not in a good health condition,” Lilo said. “But he should send someone from his delegation to represent him. It was important for him to be there.”

The incident has media reviving another incident where Tonga’s leader of the time was criticised for a lack of leadership at a time of national grief.

In 2009 the government’s MV Princess Ashika went aground killing 74 lives in Tonga.

Two days later the then king of Tonga, George Tupou V, left for Britain on a holiday trip while searchers were still combing the Pacific ocean for signs of the missing vessel and the victims.

- PNC sources