Transcript
KALAFI MOALA: Apparently, and this is what I understood is that there have been a whole series of issue that have been brought up in Parliament and actually when you listen locally here to the debate that's going on in parliament, it's chaotic in the sense that they're just going nowhere. Issues are raised and sometimes the government is double-tongued about or they don't know what's going on, they couldn't give a satisfactory answer. So i think it’s one thing after another and eventually the speaker went to see the king to express that it's not working out - what needs to be done. It's not just one issue, it's one after another.
DON WISEMAN: Can it be justified though? Removing a government on the basis of some parliamentary chaos?
KM: Well... reading The Gazzette that was issues yesterday, it's not so much dismissing the government, but more of a dissolving of parliament, but of course once you dissolve parliament you've lost the government because the government is elected or chosen by the government. But it is constitutional in the sense that the king has the powers to do that. if he feels that there is a government, or at least a parliament that is going nowhere based on advice from the speaker, he has the authority to do that according to our constitution.
DW: And can 'Akilisi's people now challenge that decision? Do they have any comeback? Or do they just have to start preparing for an election?
KM: I have no idea, Don, how they could do that. It would be a long process. But, of course, November is just around the corner. I understand that that anybody can stand for new elections including 'Akilisi and the current crop of parliamentarians
DON WISEMAN: Yes, although I guess their reputations are somewhat sullied aren't they?
KM: That is correct.
DW: What does this do the democratic movement in Tonga? It's always been a fairly fragile beast, hasn't it?
KM: Yeah. What is happening is that after almost three years of a government which is supposed to be a government of the people which is led by the leader of the pro-democracy movement, what is happening is that in three years, it has not worked. Things have gotten worse, even worse than the previous government. So I think that's where the frustration is. I don't think there needs to be a going back to the past, we need to go forward, but there are many, many things that we need to fix. We do not know how to exercise this democracy that we've got right now. It's not working out.
DW: Well, given some of the decisions or lack of decisions through these nearly three years of 'Akilisi Pohiva's government, it’s just a management thing isn't it? There's lack of management skills?
KM: Absolutely. And not only that I think when you look at it very closely there are just obvious violations of the fundamental principals of democracy. And that's why I'm saying that the democracy that we have brought into Tonga, it is not working out because i doesn't look democratic, it doesn't feel democratic and the results have not been democratic at all. So I think that's where the frustration is happening and it just so happens that 'Akilisi Pohiva and the democracy followers, this is their term in government, but they have not been able to deliver.