25 Jan 2011

French Polynesia's Tong Sang wants clean government

4:07 pm on 25 January 2011

The French Polynesian president, Gaston Tong Sang, says members of his future government is not allowed to have been given a court conviction.

According to the newspaper, Les Novelles de Tahiti, Mr Tong Sang made the comment as the assembly's finance commission was meeting to draw up the 2011 budget, which he has been struggling to draft.

His comment also comes as an early municipal election has been called in Mahina where one candidate, Emile Vernaudon, is standing while he is in jail for a corruption conviction.

Mr Tong Sang has held talks with other so-called pro-autonomy politicians in a bid to form a new majority as the budget needs to be passed by the end of March.

Among the senior politicians with convictions are Gaston Flosse, Armelle Merceron, Jean-Christophe Bouissou and Hiro Tefaarere.

Report from Tahiti say the latest round of talks has been abandoned, with a politician of the Tahoeraa Huiraatira Party saying Mr Tong Sang's demand for government portfolios for his party is excessive.