Page 6 - IB APR 2017

Whispers

No bull here Two incensed MPs have already ap-
AT least one person has fallen foul of proached the Opposition parties seeking t
the PNG-Fiji impasse on the bully beef nomination.
trade. And one has gone as far as to tell his
Fiji’s Biosecurity Authority boss, relatives that Fiji First is run by two
Xavier Khan, resigned suddenly from people only and that MPs are there only
his position shortly after an announce- to do what they are told.
ment that a ban on PNG corned beef had
been lifted. t
For more than a year the two Mela-
nesian neighbours have been at logger- Cat among pigeons
heads over the tinned goods. THE pigeons are aflutter in Canberra
Khan had led the blockade against and Wellington after the announcement
PNG - apparently at the behest of his that Indonesia might just be taking over Taxing taxi drivers
political masters - until it became too when the Regional Assistance Mission PORT Moresby taxi drivers are fast
hot in the proverbial kitchen. to the Solomon Islands leaves mid-2017. gaining a reputation for being the bane
As is usual in Fiji, the lackey eventu- Australian and New Zealand troops of a city trying to establish itself as a
ally paid the price for doing the master’s have already left and police units are safe place to do business.
bidding. gradually being drawn down with Regional traveller recently reports that
vehicles transferred to their local coun- a cab fare from Jackson’s International
t terparts. to a hotel in Waigani can cost anywhere
Into that void has stepped the Indone- from PGK30-PGK50 depending on the
sian government with support from its driver.
regional lap dogs - Fiji and PNG - after From Waigani to the Ela Beach area
a meeting in Jakarta. - according to the hotel - is PGK30 but
Once again the lack of knowledge of drivers will charge as much as PGK80 to
the region despite decades of dominance the unwitting traveller.
has come back to bite the regional Big Word of advice - use hotel cars or
Brothers in the posterior. friends’ transport in Port Moresby.
Given the atrocities Indonesian se-
curity forces have carried out in West t
Papua, the Solomon Islands can expect
Switching sides a tough time at the hand of its police Copying the neighbours
ON a similar note, watch for two soon enough. FURTHER up the road from Port Mo-
former colonels in Fiji’s military govern- resby comes the news that provincial
ment to switch political sides this month. communities are picking up lessons from
Both men lost their jobs after years across the border.
of hastening to the call of the republic’s There is a certain unhappiness in the
military strongman. Vanimo area about the number of people
And both lost their jobs over differ- being induced to convert to Islam.
ences of opinion with the Number Two That is due to increased trade with
in the same government. Indonesian and Malaysian companies.
After a particularly heated Cabinet Apart from religious habits, the locals
meeting, one of the colonels demanded have also started to sell petrol in one-
his military boss make a stand - him or litre containers in roadside stalls.
his master’s voice. t It’s something quite common across
The master went with the voice and the border in Indonesia-controlled
the loyal officer lost his job. Schools the bomb Papua.
Now he’s about to make a political THE University of the South Pacific’s
comeback and word is the knives are new campus in Honiara will be a place t
out. of definite excitement.
Work on the USP’s fourth regional No hubby
t site has been hampered by the need to THE fun and games continues at Fiji
clear unexploded ordnance from the area TV where four more people quit last
Uncertain MPs before construction can begin. month.
STILL in Fijian politics, backbenchers Most of the materiel has been left over One of them was the husband of the
in the ruling party are unhappy that from World War II and the huge Battle station’s newly appointed boss.
with about 12 months to the elections of Guadalcanal. It appears that if your spouse is the
there is no indication on whether they Whatever happens next, school will head of the organisation, you cannot
will be rewarded with tickets to contest definitely be the bomb for students and keep your job.
the polls. non-students alike. This is not the first time. The previous
It appears that Fiji First MPs will be On another note, the institution will CEO’s wife left too when her husband
asked to apply for candidature in No- lead to greater opportunities and lower became Top Dog.
vember 2017. costs for students. For once, however, staff a re more than

6 Islands Business, April 2017