Banking on the games
VAT increase will benefit the rich only
All bow to our gurus
What can ‘I’ do about this?
One for the road, again
Banking on the games
Thu
22 Oct
In response to the smokie that questioned the involvement of the other main banks in the recent sporting events, a person writes: “They were not involved because the awesome marketing team signed up to a stupid sponsorship arrangement whereby they were not permitted to have any other bank apart from BCI. I understand that at least one (if not both) wanted to contribute (quite substantially) but were turned down by marketing. Go figure!”
SILENT COMMUNICATION
A smoke signaller wonders at TCI blandishments in the weekend press. “Having spent a week on Mangaia recently unable to phone Rarotonga for three days in a row and more recently having tried unsuccessfully to ring the island on a business matter, I wonder if Mangaians, still required to pay monthly TCI phone rentals, might not successfully sue the national communications carrier for breach of service, rather than continue to suffer in silence?”
BIG SHOES TO FILL
A smoke signaller says ever since Aporo Miria was moved away from his Arorangi base as Community Constable, people have wondered where is the new officer? “He is rarely or never around the school, never checks the traffic in the morning (Miria was there regularly, AND motorists could see him) never helps putting the traffic cones out in the morning, and generally one wonders if there is a community constable there at all?”
WHO KNOWS?
Foreign affairs secretary Mike Mitchell must know something no one else does about his re-appointment, since he took off this week on another overseas jaunt supposedly to represent the country at another heady discussion, a smoke signaller writes. “It would be good to know who’s getting the HOM jobs that are still unconfirmed, along with some island secretary positions.”
SHARE THE CONTRACTS
“The government makes a lot of noise about supporting our economy, but does very little to generate internal growth, preferring to give labour and material contracts to the Chinese for various projects,” says a smoke signaller. “Sholan etc do not seem to understand how the internal multiplier mechanism works in an economy by circulating taxes, domestic spending, VAT, etc. Now we see the chairman of the CIIC using Chinese labour to build his new beach house. Why?
Is he getting free or cheap labour? Why isn’t he using local builders, where at least local families would benefit directly? Go government policy ...all they do is TALK about helping Cook Islanders.”
SAY WHAT?
Was that mispronunciation or a genuinely correct statement when the news reader on TV referred to the ‘Distratrous Management Act’?!
STORM FISHING
Fishermen are a touch bunch. Over in Cabo San Lucas (Cape Saint Luke) at the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, they watched the weather reports over the past weekend as monster Cat 5 Hurricane Rick approached their shores, the strongest eastern North Pacific storm in more than a decade. About 800 fishermen from around the world have gathered there for the Bisbee’s Los Cabos tournament, with about 130 boats taking part in the event which started yesterday. Organisers said the three-day event would not be postponed, though fishing in the first two days might be cancelled because of Rick. Luckily for them Hurricane Rick weakened rapidly and is passing to the east of the peninsula as a tropical storm. One organiser said very big 700 to 800 pound fish had been caught in the wake of storms because the churned-up waters draw in hungry fish.
Keep the smokies rolling in! Smoke Signals will be accepted by e-mail (smokesignals@cookislandsnews.com), text to 188 or a phone call to the newsroom on 22999.
VAT increase will benefit the rich only
Fri
23 Oct
Dear Editor,
Greetings from Aitutaki.
Why on earth is Sholan Ivaiti pushing government to raise VAT from 12.5 percent to 15 percent and yet he has stated that government is getting $34 million annually?
And at the same time he stated that consumers are losing their buying power because of what Sholan?
Because the 12.5 percent is too high and to think of what you’re pushing government to increase it -- you must be mad. You may have a track record but mate please look at it through the eyes of low income earners, the old people of our country -- the very people we should be looking after – and the children of our country.
In my view your proposal to government will help you reap the benefit and all those who are getting high salaries will be the ones laughing all the way to the bank.
The rich will get richer and the poor can go to hell – what a disgrace.
You should be replaced because you don’t think of others.
M Ruta
Aitutaki
All bow to our gurus
Sat
24 Oct
“Let’s see if I have this right,” begins a smoke signaller. “The DPM returns from travel and is shocked – shocked! – to learn that his Secretary for Finance has proposed a tax increase. Less than a year away from election, DPM rejects the tax increase. Hooray for that – a sensible and ever so popular move. Next our hero instructs his Secretary to go back to the drawing board and return with a tax that “will put money in our pockets”. Now that’s impressive! He has MY vote! Fancy a tax that gives us money, not takes it away. And when they come up with this amazing new tax, DPM and his Secretary deserve to share the Nobel Prize for economics. Not just me, the whole world will be grateful.”
ITI TANGATA SUFFER ELITE BLUNDERS
“The comments from John Hayes, National Party NZ are spot on,” a signaller says. “The system in place in Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau works well for the political and bureaucratic elite, while the iti tangata just suffers and tightens the belt another notch. Where else would a Minister of Finance and a Secretary of Finance get away with such a display of sheer incompetence, vis--vis the Toa and the VAT fiasco, and not be fired, laid off, put out to pasture or whatever (oh sorry, here we get put on suspension on full pay, or demand a fat bonus). Where else would the leader of the Opposition fly off to a far-off country in Africa on a totally useless junket, at a cost that would keep a whole school running for a year, and come back without any report to the voting public, and next year try and become Prime Minister? Wake up Kotou...
AND THE NOMINATION FOR BEST ACTOR
No holding back on this issue as another signaller writes: “What autocrat barks orders to Shoddy Sholan to prepare the papers for an increase of VAT to 15%, but faced with fierce public resistance, switches roles to be the good guy to put a stop to it! Dear DPM, you should be in Hollywood.”
‘JUST PAY UP’
And from the other side, a smoke signaller asks: “What are people going on about government wanting to pay Brett Porter/Toa Petroleum $1 million dollars? Just think of it like the subsidy that we pay Air New Zealand for flying to Los Angeles!” On the same subject, another person says that we should pay off Porter and then sack financial secretary Sholan Ivaiti afterwards. “Short and sweet, and it puts us out of our misery!”
SPOTLIGHT SHINES ON PRISON ISSUES
The secretary of the Ministry of Justice seems to be doing an about turn on prison issues. On Monday Mark Short was saying prison reform/changes were not a priority and would have to be considered in the context of all nine justice departments. Now he’s advised he’s preparing a cabinet submission, and at last he is consulting Gordon Sawtell. The question on everyone’s lips is if the jailbirds cut their way out of their maximum security cell, how did they do the cutting - with their teeth?!
IT’S THAT SEASON AGAIN
With one week to the start of another cyclone season there’s been plenty of interest from people requesting an electronic copy of the Cook Islands cyclone tracking map (e-mail editor@cookislandsnews.com with ‘cyclone map request’ in the subject heading). About now we should be reading some information from Emergency Management Cook Islands on the approaching season...
AND PIGS WILL FLY
“A $20 maximum fine for extreme cruelty to animals?” a stunned smoke signaller asks. “Both the owner and the caretaker of the pigs should have been sent to jail for at least part of a year, which was the other option open to presiding magistrate Matapo. One also has to wonder how the owner of the pigs is going to react when he himself strikes a ‘Cruelty to Animals’ situation while he is presiding on the bench.”
GPC MISSING IN ACTION?
“With Government’s ambition to purchase over-priced TOA for a million plus dollars when there is no fuel crisis and no binding contract for it to do so and it’s also not fiscally responsible according to the MFEM Act for government to proceed with this purchase... why haven’t the Golden Girls of protest organised a march or peaceful protest?” a signaller asks. “Maybe they’re AWOL (absent without leave) Wake up G.P.C. or have you decided to R.I.P. on this major issue!”
JOIN THE ‘350’ TREK TODAY
If you read this early today, get your hiking gear on and support the international Day of Climate Action with a trek up to the base of Te Rua Manga, known also as The Needle. Pa Teuruaa of Pa’s Treks will lead the hike and he recommends people bring plenty of water, a light snack, mossie repellent, comfy walking shoes and a spare dry T-shirt in case of rain. Organisers say all are welcome – the more the merrier – and the trek will go ahead rain or shine, departing from the Power Station at Avatiu at 8.15am today. A photographer and videographer will capture the trek to add to the world-wide collection on the website 350.org. That’s the number leading scientists say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide – measured in parts per million in our atmosphere. 350 ppm “is the number humanity needs to get back to as soon as possible to avoid runaway climate change.” There will be over 4000 events taking place simultaneously in over 175 nations today and organisers say as far as they can tell, today’s events will be the single most widespread day of political action about any issue that our planet has seen.
What can ‘I’ do about this?
Tue
27 Oct
Responding to the Saturday smokie ‘GPC Missing in action’ a smoke signaller writes: “So much of the time we expect others to step up and take the lead, the time has come when we cannot just rely on one group of individuals, each one of us has to do our bit. People have to recognise that they are part of the solution, rather than ask the question ‘Why haven’t the Golden Girls of protest organised a march or peaceful protest?’ their thought should be ‘Wait a minute, what can I do about this major issue?’ Take a public stand on the issues that you feel strongly about and organize the march or peaceful protest yourself and ‘be the change you wish to see in our country’.
‘GIANT KILLERS STRIKE AGAIN’
That was the heading in the online article at NRL.com after our national rugby league team brought great pride to our country when they defeated favourites Fiji in the inaugural Pacific Cup played in the Papua New Guinea capital Port Moresby on Friday. Their 24-22 win over Fiji books the Cooks a place in the finals this Saturday against hosts PNG, with the winner joining Australia, New Zealand and England in the 2010 Four Nations tournament. The match-winning points against Fiji came off a high kick in the corner when 21 year-old winger Dominique Peyroux – who plays for the Gold Coast Titans in the NRL competition – scored his second try of the match. Fiji is rugby league’s number one ranked Pacific nation and were semi-finalists in last year’s World Cup. TV viewers would have seen the PNG crowd at the Lloyd Robson Oval cheering on our team with the chant “Coo-kies, Coo-kies, Coo-kies” This Saturday’s finals should be an amazing game to watch. Go Cookies!
One for the road, again
Wed
28 Oct
“The never ending display of wrecked vehicles and the police commissioner wringing his hands over the never ending parade of drink drivers would be comic if not so tragic,” a smoke signaller writes. “Who is afraid of the consequences of drink driving? Get drunk, drive, crash, appear in court, get wrist slapped, pay $30 fine, get disqualified but get permission to drive anyway, get drunk, drive while disqualified, appear in court, pay $30 fine, have disqualification extended but get permission to drive anyway. Just how many drunk drivers are currently in jail?”
REINVENTING THE COMPASS?
A smoke signaller writes: “In the CINews on Friday the new Justice Secretary said: ‘The latest construction plans propose more cell blocks and a watch tower that has a 365 degree viewing platform.’ In my time at sea I have only ever sailed in vessels having compass cards with a total of 360 degrees. Does the new Secretary know something that mariners and aviators have missed all these years?” SmokeSignals: We checked, and that’s what he said. Maybe what our busy Justice Secretary was thinking about was it’ll have a 360 degree view 365 days of the year?
MAKING THE NEWS
Hooray! The Cook Islands gets a mention in the United States’ largest circulation newspaper, the Wall Street Journal, and other media outlets...bummer, it’s to do with a prominent Washington lobbyist Robert J. Cabelly allegedly working secretly for the Sudanese government in violation of a U.S embargo, and allegedly having US$180,000 (approx. NZ$242,000) paid into an account he maintains here in Rarotonga. Oh well, maybe the saying ‘Any publicity is good publicity’ might apply in this case...or not.
WHERE THERE’S SMOKE...
“If the government won’t admit that airborne particulate matter originating from burning rubbish is not a threat to our health, to the tourism industry, and to our general peace of mind, maybe they can agree that it damages expensive computer and electronic equipment,” writes a smoke signaller. “You won’t find gardeners burning rubbish right next to the Beehive. Perhaps future aid funding needs to come with policy adjustment requirements that address health, and rewards to companies bringing in more tourism dollars. Help us to help ourselves – clean up the air so we can enjoy thriving tourist venues where our neighbours are not smoking out the customers, please.”
TWO BUCKS A SIP
On the theme of expensive prices on the island, one local and her husband enjoyed a night out for dinner at a resort this past week. “We ordered a small glass of Giesens Sauvignon Blanc and were told it was $11. I can buy a bottle at the Bond for $16!”
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