MP for Renbel fails to address serious allegations of corruption

Hon. Seth - thanks for your reply. I’m willing to help you out in your project to help disadvantaged children in Bellona, whose fathers and mothers have left  to marry 02, 03 and 04, and continue to have mistresses and manstresses, while accusing others of their disadvantaged upbringing. I know that Hon. Seth Gukuna is very qualified to make sound assessment in this area so I will leave it to your best judgement. No hard feelings mate! It is part of your reputation and leadership history over the past six years.  

The media have been littered with Seth’s articles and personal attacks of our people who have dared to speak and ask questions about his ongoing dubious dealings and alleged corruption. I’ve to accept that – that is your strength as a leader, to bully people to submission. I’m not the one who had told the mainstream media in Solomon Islands about his qualification and professional capability as the basis of not accepting any advice from anyone in our community over the future development of our two islands and management of government grants, projects, funds and CDF to our constituency. Now Seth has added a new issue, his self-proclaim as the brightest kid ever produced by the Rennell and Bellona community. Congratulation mate! Read more in my blog:

Full article on my blog: http://pacwantokinternational.blogspot.com.au/

 

I respect those achievements Seth, but you have boasted about them to the wrong person, wrong forum, and wrong crowd, and by the way, it is a wrong topic because our debate is based on a dossier of your personal misdemeanour, shocking admissions, allegations of corrupt practices, nepotism and cronyism on the basis of voting allegiance and family members. And no one can forget Seth’s attitude of threatening, bullying opponents, disrespect, stealing of fund for the MV Renbel and his big fat liar of claiming in the media that he had given chiefs in both islands shares in his company, Renbel Shipping Ltd. He did not pay one single cent to them at all.

I know it is a bitter pill to swallow when someone like me, who is well equipped to take on a known bullying MP and able to point out his mistakes and follies. Obviously, when a national leader and government minister labelled a person as an “idiot”, it goes to show his family values, community nurturing, leadership quality, professional ethics, limitations in Western education, professional background and the lack of it. I wish to remind Seth and his cronies in this forum that the focus of our debate is not me or my education background. Just in case you’ve forgotten, they are as follow.

(1), the allegation that as a candidate in the past election, Seth was dishing out huge funds (or using government money, CDF, Millennium Fund, grants and project funds) to a core group of individuals and households in Bellona, bribing them to vote for him in the 2010 national election.

(2) Seth blatant admission that allocations for past and future project funding and CDF applicants from Renbel voters were determined and will be considered on the basis of their voting “allegiance” (supporter-based) and nothing to do with their merits (economic prospects and need).

(3) Seth shocking admission that he had made priority funding from the national government to his friends and members of his immediate family, including his own daughter and brother in-law), on the basis of relationships and because he had the legal provision to use it at whatever ways he wishes.

(4) Seth’s ongoing legal battle with Renbel Province over his previous scam  as Policy Advisor to his brother-in-law and former Premier, Matthew Taupongi, and his siphoning of the $2m national government grant to his personal bank account that purchased his private boat, but disguising it as a provincial vessel, MV Renbel.

(5) As an elected MP of Renbel, Seth has promised that he would not assist or allow any person who did not vote for him in the 2010 national election to benefit from any current and future government funding project, CDF etc. Those included my own relatives, who are not his supporters. You are a disgrace Seth, not only to our people and past generations’ proud traditional leaders, but the people of Solomon Islands, whom you are currently serving as a government Minister. Your attitude of retribution, revenge and “divide and rule” is very dangerous in a nation where people are often divided about their political views, allegiances and ethnic biases.

In Seth’s latest reply, he did not deny the facts, yet he continued on with his usual tactic, personal digging. Honestly, I have no personal grudges against Seth. I do not even envy his leadership style and achievements that he had boasted about in the Solomon Islands mainstream media, parliament and this forum since becoming an MP in 2006. What I do not like is his blatant corrupt practices that now shaped the future political culture of Renbel. Worse still, Seth’s relentless attempts in the media and parliament to cover them up by bullying, threatening and arrogantly attacking critics and concerned citizens, including myself, who dared to speak.

I took exception to his personal attacks on young journalists, especially from our two islands. No one could ever forget his insult and humiliation of our people in Parliament over the issue of an additional constituent.  There are many ways of skinning a cat Seth, but how this so-called educated and self-proclaimed nerd from Rennell and Bellona insulted our people in the eyes of the Solomon Islands society is beyond comprehension and unforgivable. The only person in our community to rebuff Seth humiliation of our people was the late Kaipua Tohibangu, yet Seth made a mockery of it in the media. Obviously, Seth is quite narrow-minded about the history of our people, especially those who had contributed to the development of our two islands in the past decades before his turn, in a contemporary and dual Solomon Islands society, where elected leaders are expected to perform their responsibilities according to democratic principles (ethics) that underlying our modern expectations.

One could only tell in a snap-shot the capability, leadership quality and competency of this man by simply reading his personal attacks on critics and concerned voters in the media. Our MP is really struggling with his people skills and ability to accept criticisms – and no one can blame him. This is very basic, but for Seth information sake, the basic premise of any person who runs for public office is to serve the people – tolerance and listen are vital skills and virtues in this regard. Human nature sometimes overrules such noble ideal, but leaders often strive to achieve it with dignity. Unfortunately for our people, Seth’s leadership style has demonstrated a lack of sound judgement in key issues, ignorance, meaningless boastfulness, and pride about himself.  They mask his judgement.

Over his entire career as our MP, he has demonstrated an attitude of snobbish and suffering from the “no one is equal to me” syndrome. I’m sure the former Prime Minister, Danny Philip, has a lot to say about this issue over Seth’s apparent disrespect of political colleagues, yet he demanded respect from everyone else, including myself. In the past, a number of Tongahiti senior leaders and bureaucrats have also expressed similar disappointment and assessment about their own experience in their dealing with Seth. I sympathise with Seth, especially his stunning admission that he did not like any academic analysis of his leadership performance. Obviously, his admission is a true reflection of his limitations and the fact that the issues are out of his reach.

I also wish to thank Seth for highlighting my education background at Siota. It is a humble beginning, which I’m very proud of. As Sione Sa’omoana Tuhaika stated, Siota is a place that dear to my heart: a school that provided me with the educational and cultural grounding to take ownership of my future destiny and making ethical judgement about issues. Interestingly, it was the only secondary education institution that I attended prior to NZ and USP, Fiji, where I successfully completed my professional training with flying colours (two academic awards). Not bad for a disadvantaged kid, coming out of a non-entity school in the Solomons.

I only reached form 3, which had also proved that if you “think big” and work hard, you will achieve your goals. In fact, I’ve been using my disadvantaged educational background to help motivates Pacific Islands’ kids under a University of Queensland program called, Poly-Vision, in the past and also teach Basic English to refuge kids in recent time. I’m was and now working as a volunteer for both programs. My message to disadvantaged kids and their parents in Renbel, who have insulted by our MP Seth latest derogatory statement about disadvantaged upbringing and schools is this, please don’t give up. The ‘reputation’ of an institution has no bearing in your future destiny. I went to University with former students from privileged families and schools such as Betikama, Fulton College, Su’u, KG VI, Selwyn, NZ and Australia, and I beat them all.  Lo USP, NZ and Australia, staka students from privileged families and schools failed to complete their studies because of “attitude Problem”. Seth, no one is interested in knowing our education achievement. Our young people are looking for inspiration and stories that could inspire them to achieve their goals and dreams in life.

What matter most in life is our “attitude”. As a student, get your priority right. This is the only thing that I can boast about to Seth: I’m a living example of someone who had brought up in a disadvantaged family (broken home as Seth has always wanted to tell people) and attended a disadvantaged school (Siota), and still manage to accomplish my dreams. Seth, I was graduated from the University of the Hard Knocks and later become an award winning journalist. I wish to say this to many of our young people, who are from disadvantaged families and attending disadvantage primary and secondary schools, and also universities and colleges, never give up in your dreams to become what you want in life. Don’t allow anyone’s achievement to intimidate you from taking ownership of your life in determining your future. Additionally, don’t forget “GOD”. We can agree to disagree about our political views, religious beliefs and method of practicing our faith, but God is the source of knowledge and wisdom. I’m glad that Seth is not God because if he is God, his critics will be denied of his many blessings. Fortunately, God does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of his family, education background, political views and voting preferences.

On another issue that Seth has boasted about. During my early years as primary school kid in Bellona, I was told that the two brightest or “Dux” students of their time were: Francis Dugan Tekatoha at both Betikama and KG IV, and later Tesua Mu’akitangata at both Betikama and KG VI. Both went overseas (Fiji and NZ) for their education. I’m proud and humble to think that Johnie Tango (MA), Solly Tingia (MA), Francis Tuimaka (BA), Sione Saomoana Tuhaika (BA) and many others, including some of Seth supporters, are products of Siota. What I’m doing now is none of your business and anyone’s business really. My blog is my personal communication tool, a new form of communication in the journalism profession. It provides me the freedom, without the harassment of corrupt political leaders like Seth, to openly express my views.

Honestly, reading through Seth articles, it appears that he is a psychopath, who continues to embarrass himself with his meaningless rant and clumsy attempts to defend the undependable follies of his leadership.  It is not your business to cast judgement over private citizen blog content because they are not publishing for the purpose of this forum and not meant for you. But if you are so worried about, it is my marketing tool because my clients are living abroad. Additionally, I have never claimed to be interested of coming back and work for the Solomon Islands government, but Renbel province. If you’ve any problem with it, too bad!

Just get use to this new reality in our community Seth. I’m living overseas but my heart and soul is in Bellona. I will continue to speak on behalf of my people, including my dad, mum, aunties and siblings; many of them are not sophisticated enough to figure out your under table dealings, which you’ve proved over the past years in Renbel Province as a former advisor and now as an MP. I’m not going to be intimidated by you or anyone else from your cronies, even by your personal attacks.

 

You are threatening, making derogatory and sarcastic statements and accusations against the wrong person at the wrong time and wrong place. Just watch your steps about your personal attacks because the return volley will be very painful. My next article will be an analysis of vote-buying and how our MP’s actions and media statements have demonstrated the hallmarks of using bribery in politics.