A RIFT has developed within the Solomon Islands tax department after claims of an $SBD 85million discrepancy.
Solomon Islands Inland Revenue Department head, Joseph Dokekana, has ridiculed assertions by his staff of the discrepancy in the Solomon Islands Tobacco Company taxes between 2015 and 2021.
Veteran journalist, Ofani Eremae, said a rift had developed between tax office staff and Dokekana after no action was taken on their investigations into the company.
Under-declared imports, missing documents, and inconsistent tax filings are believed to have been uncovered by investigators.
Samoa salvage ends
Salvage operations of the sunken HMNZS Manawanui have ended with the salvors’ barge returning to New Zealand from Samoa.
On board was the equipment and debris from in and around the naval vessel which sank off Apia in October 2024. This included tanktainers containing the unusable diesel fuel, oil, seawater mix.
“It was a delicate operation to ensure the least impact was made on the surrounding environment and removed any potential risk during a significant weather event,’’ Commodore Andrew Brown said.
“With the focus clearly on the next steps for Manawanui, we await the draft independent wreck assessment for New Zealand agencies review. Expert studies of the reef and environment in the vicinity of Manawanui, will inform and sit alongside this assessment. These studies will provide valuable advice to inform government decisions, and it’s important the experts take the time to be careful and thorough.”
Brown said every effort had been taken to leave the Manawanui as safe and secure as possible.
Samoa has declared a 2km Prohibited Area around the wreck site
Break the silence on periods
A CALL in Suva to break the silence, change mindsets and start openly talking about periods.
At an event to mark World Menstrual Health Day, the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement Board Chair, called for an end to the stigma on periods and advocating for better WASH facilities in schools.
The annual event, with almost 180 participants from different communities around Suva, is a platform used to share awareness and information about menstruation and its related issues.
“Whatever that is held as taboo does not make sense now – times have changed. We need to talk about periods, we need to make our voices louder so that we can have respectable dignified experiences when we get our periods and unless we have those open and honest conversations, we are never going to come out of this cycle of stigmatising periods. It is our responsibility to ensure that our menstrual needs and health is well taken care of,” FWRM Executive Director Nalini Singh said.
Ministers endorse agriculture plan
Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry from Pacific Island countries and territories endorsed the Growing the Pacific 2050 Strategy for Agriculture and Forestry at the 4th Regional Meeting of Pacific Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry, held in Nuku’alofa, Tonga.
The meeting concluded the Pacific Week of Agriculture and Forestry (PWAF), hosted by Tonga and supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Pacific Community (SPC).
Ministers endorsed a five-point strategy around healthy, regenerative, secure, integrated, and enabled pathways which will collectively guide transformative action across the agriculture and forestry sector.
These pathways underpin eight catalytic initiatives (2025–2030), which include promoting One Health and regenerative practices, advancing afforestation and climate-resilient systems, strengthening biosecurity and agrobiodiversity, supporting agribusiness and exports, and enhancing data, knowledge, and education systems to build future talent.
This endorsement marks a major milestone in the region’s collective commitment to building resilient, sustainable, and inclusive agrifood systems for the future.